Teaching & Service
In her poem, “Why Write Love Poetry in a Burning World,” Katie Farris answers her titular question with, “To train myself to find / in the midst of hell / what isn’t hell.” I teach this poem in every one of my creative writing classes, because it helps students consider the role of art, of poetry, of writing, in what is a perpetually burning world. What is our place, as writers and artists, in a time of climate crisis, of human cruelty, of late-stage capitalism—but more so, what is our responsibility, to ourselves, to the communities we are a part of, and to the world we inhabit?
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
Teaching Assistant (Serving as Sole Instructor), The University of Wisconsin-Madison, Fall 2021-present
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ENGL 307: Creative Writing Fiction & Poetry Workshop, Spring 2024—This course introduces students to the fundamental elements of craft in both fiction and poetry. It is typically run as a workshop in which discussion focuses on craft issues, assigned published work, and original student fiction and poetry. It is similar to English 207 but with greater emphasis on craft and the writing process
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ENGL695: Directed Creative Writing, Fall 2023—This is a directed study course required of students wishing to graduate with an English Major with Creative Writing Emphasis. Students work individually with a faculty member on a senior thesis, typically in fiction or poetry.
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ENGL100: Writing & Composition, Fall 2022, Spring 2023—This is an introductory course to college writing, geared primarily at first year students, where students develop skills in narrative, informative, and argumentative writing.
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ENGL207: Intro to Creative Writing, Fall 2021, Spring 2022—This is an introductory course on fiction and poetry, geared primarily at first year students and sophomores, which a prominent workshop component and an emphasis on craft development.
Videos
Poetry Against Tyranny, Harvard Universtiy Asia Center
On February 4, 2022, the Asia Center, Lakshmi Mittal and Family South Asia Institute, and Aruna Global South sponsored the event Poetry Against Tyranny: A Reading and Conversation with Three Burmese Poets to commemorate the anniversary of the coup that took place in Myanmar on February 1, 2021.
Art & Power: A Diaspora Dialogue on Myanmar/Burma
Organized by University of California-Riverside's Southeast Asia: Text, Ritual, Performance (SEATRiP) program. Guest speakers: Chaw Ei Thein and Mandy Moe Pwint Tu. Note: the documentary "LISTEN" about Chaw Ei Thein that was shown during the event has been omitted from this video.
Why creativity is challenging for minority students
Minority students face a wide range of challenges at predominantly white institutions and may find that their creative pursuits come secondary to fostering inclusive spaces. Drawing from her own experience as an international student, Mandy Moe Pwint Tu describes the difficulty she has faced in striving for inclusion at her university while simultaneously cultivating her creative work.