Carolyn Kreiter-Foronda

Carolyn Kreiter-Foronda
Born Carolyn Kreiter
1946
Central Virginia, USA
Occupation Author, Painter, Educator, Speaker, Art & Poetry Judge, Writing Consultant
Nationality United States
Alma mater University of Mary Washington
George Mason University
Notable works Contrary Visions (1988)
Gathering Light (1993)
Death Comes Riding (1999)
Greatest Hits (2001)
River Country (2008)
The Embrace: Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo (2013)
Notable awards Poet Laureate of Virginia (2006–2008)
Art in Literature: Mary Lynn Kotz Award
Ellen Anderson Award
Virginia Cultural Laureate Award
Rotary Meritorious Educator of the Year Award
National Scholastic Teacher Portfolio Award

Carolyn Kreiter-Foronda[1] (born 1946) was named Poet Laureate of Virginia[2] by the Governor, Tim Kaine, on June 26, 2006. She succeeded Rita Dove and served in this position from June 2006 – July 2008. While serving as Poet Laureate, Carolyn started the "Poetry Book Giveaway Project" and added the "Poets Spotlight"[3] to her webpage highlighting one poet from the Commonwealth each month, in addition to traveling widely to promote poetry in every corner of Virginia.

Carolyn is a lifelong educator and has received numerous literary and academic honors. She gives poetry readings in public and private settings and offers workshops in museums, libraries, and universities. Her service-oriented projects include stints in nursing homes and homeless shelters. From 2010 to 2011, she served as a Literary Arts Specialist with former Virginia Poet Laureate, Claudia Emerson, on a Metrorail Public Art Project, conceived by the Art-in-Transit Program of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority. Juried poems by Virginia writers, including past and present Poets Laureate of Virginia, will be integrated into artistic works by Martin Donlin, Barbara Grygutis, and David Dahlquist at three Tysons Corner metro stations, Tysons East, Tysons Central 7, and Tysons West, scheduled for completion in 2012.

Carolyn is an abstract colorist painter, and her paintings have been featured in solo exhibitions throughout northern, central, and eastern Virginia.

Biography

Early years

Carolyn Kreiter-Foronda was born in Central Virginia in 1946. She spent her youth in Crewe, Pulaski, and Sandston, Virginia. As a young child, Carolyn avidly read poetry and wrote her first poem prior to entering elementary school. Encouraged by her parents, who were both educators, to hone her creative skills, she devoted hours to writing poetry and fiction. Her parents also influenced her decision to become an English and creative writing teacher. Her mother, Lucille Kreiter, was her teacher in fifth and sixth grades. Her father, Victor Kreiter, Sr., was her high school principal at Highland Springs High School. While attending high school, she developed an interest in journalism and became a staff member of the school newspaper, Highland Fling. She also served as a Youth Page correspondent for the Richmond News Leader, the city’s afternoon daily newspaper. She was inducted into Quill and Scroll, National Honor Society, and the Beta Club. She also belonged to the Interclub Council and Future Teachers of America. During her sophomore year she received a Citizenship Award, and as a senior she was awarded a Future Teachers of America Scholarship and the Dr. Joseph Haven Hoge Memorial Scholarship for university study. Her parents encouraged her to attend Mary Washington College (now the University of Mary Washington), the women’s division of the University of Virginia.

A member of Hoofprints, Carolyn won several first-place awards in horse shows and was selected a Reserve Champion, Intermediate Level, in the 1967 Spring Horse Show. During her senior year she served as President of the Student Education Association and as Vice-President of the Student Virginia Education Association. In 1969 she graduated with a B.A. in English (Mortar Board). In 2008 she was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa (Kappa of Virginia) as an alumni member.

Career and higher education

In August 1969, Carolyn started her teaching career at West Springfield High School in Springfield, Virginia. While teaching full-time, she received a Master of Arts, a Master in Education, and a Ph.D. degree from George Mason University, where she studied creative writing under the award-winning poets, Peter Klappert and Ai. In 1983, she was awarded the first doctorate presented by the school. She won a Scholarship and Service Award and a Letter of Recognition for Quality Research from the Virginia Educational Research Association for her dissertation, Gathering Light: A Poet’s Approach to Poetry Analysis. In 2007, she was named Alumna of the Year by both the University of Mary Washington and George Mason University.

Retirement

Flowering Crimson and Gold
Carolyn Kreiter-Foronda, Private Collection

Educational - After retiring from a 31-year career in education, Carolyn developed a statewide poetry-in-the-schools program at the request of the Poetry Society of Virginia to promote poetry at all instructional levels (K-University). She co-edited with Edward W. Lull an instructional guide, entitled Four Virginia Poets Laureate: A Teaching Guide and secured grant funding to place copies of this book in various educational settings and libraries. She also led an effort through the Poetry Society of Virginia to fund an endowed poetry prize for deserving creative writing students at Virginia colleges and universities. To date, the College Prize, under the auspices of the Academy of American Poets, has been established at the College of William and Mary, the University of Mary Washington, Old Dominion University, the University of Richmond, and Virginia Tech.

After being appointed Poet Laureate in July 2006, Carolyn launched a Poetry Book Giveaway Project. White Pine Press, University of Arkansas Press, and the Poetry Society of Virginia have contributed books, poetry DVDs, and CDs to this effort. Carolyn has distributed these educational materials to universities and high schools throughout Virginia. She set up a Poet’s Spotlight Page on her website (www.carolynforonda.com) to highlight the work of poets who have a strong Virginia connection. She devoted countless hours on the road giving poetry readings and workshops throughout the state. During her term as Poet Laureate, the Virginia State Board of Education honored her efforts with a Resolution of Appreciation for her recognition as Poet Laureate and for “her sustained leadership and devotion to promoting the writing and reading of poetry among Virginia’s young people and to raising the study of the Arts to the highest level.”

Artistic - Carolyn also works as an abstract artist. She studied art for 17 years in northern Virginia under the award-winning painter, Irene Wood-Montgomery. Her paintings and sculpture have been exhibited in galleries, educational settings, and nursing homes throughout the state of Virginia. Carolyn is an abstract colorist, whose preferred medium is acrylic. Influenced by the non-representational style of Jackson Pollock and by the Washington, D.C. color field painter, Sam Gilliam, Carolyn experiments with color effects to evoke an emotional response from the viewer. Inspired by the late work of Henri Matisse, Carolyn creates textured cut-outs to achieve a representational effect.

Personal life

Carolyn and her husband reside in the River Country region of Virginia, where they have established a Backyard Wildlife Habitat, certified by the National Wildlife Federation. During their leisure time, they enjoy kayaking, Latin dancing and American-style ballroom dancing.

Published works

Carolyn has written poetry, a teaching guide, news articles, book chapters, a booklet; and her work was included in the 2009 Rappahannock Art League Calendar which features 11 poems from River Country.

Poetry books and anthologies

Publication in prize anthologies

Individual poem publication

Carolyn has published poems widely throughout the country and abroad in magazines, journals and anthologies, including:

In English

After Shocks: The Poetry of Recovery for Life-Shattering Events;[16] Anthology of Magazine Verse & Yearbook of American Poetry; Antioch Review; Autumn Sky Poetry;[17][18] Bay Splash; Beltway Poetry Quarterly;[19] Best of the Literary Journals; Black Water Review; Blood to Remember: American Poets on the Holocaust; Comstock Review; The Dead Mule;[20][21][22] Dominion Review; Eclectica Magazine;[23] El Quetzal; Gloucester Gazette Journal; Hispanic Culture Review; Hungry As We Are; Image/Word: A Book of Poems; Mid-American Review; Negative Capability; Nimrod International Journal; Passages North; Phoebe; Poet Lore; Prairie Schooner; South Florida Poetry Review; Southside Sentinel; Sporting Words Anthology; Terrain.org;[24][25] The Other Voices International Cyber-Anthology;[26][27] The Ghosts of Virginia, Vol. XIII; The Ledge; The Sound of Poets Cooking; Virginia Living; WPFW 89.3 FM Poetry Anthology; among others

Other languages

Kae Morii, a Japanese poet from Tokyo, Carolyn Kreiter-Foronda, and Joyce Brinkman (not pictured) from Indiana, collaborated in writing a poem, entitled "Kasen Renga: Autumn," which was later translated into Japanese.

Carolyn's first poem written in Spanish and English appears in her book, Gathering Light. Other poems have since been translated into Spanish by Rei Berroa,[28] professor of Spanish and Latin American Studies at George Mason University, and appear in the anthology, Cauteloso engaño del sentito, edited by Dr. Berroa, as part of Colección Libros de la Luna, Vol. No. 2, Santo Domingo, República Dominicana, 2007.[29]

Collaborations

Carolyn works on collaborations with Joyce Brinkman, Poet Laureate of Indiana (2002–2008), and other poets throughout the world. Tipton Poetry Review[30] (Fall 2010, Issue #19) contains a kasen renga[31] written by Carolyn and Joyce, in collaboration with Kae Morii, who translated the poem into Japanese.

Booklet

Book chapters

Articles (most notable)

Other

Honors, awards and fellowships

Honors

Virginia Poets Laureate at the University of Mary Washington Reunion Day, June 3, 2011. Carolyn Kreiter-Foronda (2006–2008), Claudia Emerson (2008–2010), and Kelly Cherry (2010–2012)[33]
Poets Laureate - Joyce Brinkman (Indiana) and Carolyn Kreiter-Foronda (Virginia) at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. in 2007

Awards

Fellowships and grants

Painting and art exhibits

Paintings and sculpture have been exhibited in galleries, educational settings, and nursing homes throughout the state of Virginia, including the Paul R. Cramer Arts Gallery at the Steward School in Richmond (solo); Petersburg Public Library (solo); Fredericksburg Center for the Arts (solo); Yates House Gallery; The Tides Inn; Labor Day Show in Kilmarnock; Rappahannock Art League; Bay School; Sunrise Gallery, and many others. Paintings displayed at the Yates House and Blue Skies Gallery events were inspired by Carolyn's poems.

Carolyn has also served as a judge of regional arts shows in eastern Virginia, including art exhibits at The Bay School of the Arts in Mathews, Virginia, Yates House in Deltaville, Virginia, and Blue Skies Gallery in Hampton, Virginia.

Academic positions and work experience

Richard, the Magician, Sculpture created by Carolyn Kreiter-Foronda to use as a teaching aid in the classroom. Private Collection.
[42] Audio Interview

Other positions, posts and appointments

Poetry reading by Carolyn Kreiter-Foronda at the Cafe Gutenberg in Richmond, VA. October 2005

Memberships

Speaker / workshops / presentations / panels

  • Muscarelle Museum, Williamsburg, VA
  • Block Island, Rhode Island
  • Arts Alive, West Point, VA
  • Writer's Center, Bethesda, MD
  • Middleburg Library, Middleburg, VA
  • Beverly Street Studio, Staunton, VA
  • Studio Gallery, Kilmarnock, VA
  • Arlington Arts Center, Arlington, VA
  • The Venue of 35th Street, Norfolk, VA
  • 40th Street Stage, Norfolk, VA
  • Uptown Gallery, Richmond, VA
  • Studio 9, Tappahannock, VA

  • 2007 VATE Conference Speaker, Northern Virginia
  • Virginia Museum of Fine Arts teacher workshops, VA
  • Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, Fairfax, VA
  • James River Writers Conference, Richmond, VA
  • 2010 Convocation Speaker, Virginia Intermont College, VA
  • National League of American Pen Women, Richmond Branch, Richmond, VA
  • Dimview Chapters for the visually impaired in VA (volunteer work)
  • CCNV Homeless Shelter, Washington, D.C. (volunteer work)
  • Iliff Nursing Home, Dunn Loring, VA (volunteer work)
  • Manassas Lifelong Learning Institute, Manassas, VA
  • Chesapeake Bay Writers, Tidewater area of VA
  • and others

Workshops for professionals

Carolyn is an educator's educator, providing workshops for professionals on how to improve and incorporate literature, especially poetry, into the curriculum. She has provided sessions to teachers, as well as administrators, from Kindergarten through 12th to University levels. Topics include:

  • “Writing and the Learning Disabled Student”
  • “How to Implement the 4-Phase Writing Process”
  • “Writing and the Academically Unsuccessful Student”
  • “Creative Writing for All Students”
  • “Thinking Skills in the English Curriculum”
  • “Writing Memos: A Workshop for Secretaries”
  • “Teaching Creative Writing in the Nursing Home
  • Free Verse Poetry: What It Is and How to Teach It”
  • “Establishing a Reading Writing Group in the School Setting”
  • Central American literature in the Social Studies Curriculum”
  • “Organizing a Writers-in-the-Schools Program Featuring Minority Writers as Role Models
  • and many others

Articles / book reviews / interviews / feature stories about Kreiter-Foronda

Orchid, Lift Your Spirit to the Sun
Carolyn Kreiter-Foronda, Private Collection

2009 to present

2008

2007

2006

2000–2005

pre 2000

References

Death Comes Riding (1999)
Contrary Visions (1988)
  1. Kreiter is pronounced like Writer
  2. Virginia Law and Library of Congress List of Poets Laureate of Virginia
  3. "Poet's Spotlight" at www.CarolynForonda.com
  4. ISBN 978-0-9828295-4-7 Urban Voices: 51 Poems from 51 American Poets(2014)
  5. ISBN 978-1-935248-63-7 Seasons of Sharing: A Kasen Renku Collaboration (2014)
  6. ISBN 978-0982829561 The Embrace: Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo (2013)
  7. ISBN 978-1-937997-22-9 Gathering Light (2013)
  8. ISBN 978-1-60461-003-1 River Country (2008)
  9. Dynamic Reading video on YouTube: Carolyn reads from River Country, poem: "Dragon Run"
  10. ISBN 0-9704804-5-8 Four Virginia Poets Laureate: A Teaching Guide (2006)
  11. ISBN 1-58998-023-9 Greatest Hits 1981–2000 (2001)
  12. ISBN 0-930526-25-2 In a Certain Place (2000)
  13. ISBN 0-930526-24-4 Death Comes Riding (1999)
  14. ISBN 0-930526-20-1 Gathering Light (1993)
  15. ISBN 0-916379-47-7 Contrary Visions (1988)
  16. After Shocks: The Poetry of Recovery for Life-Shattering Events
  17. Autumn Sky Poetry poem: "Two Voices: Frida’s Heart" after Frida Kahlo’s “Memory, or the Heart” 1937.
  18. Autumn Sky Poetry poem: "The Skeleton on Top of Frida Kahlo's Four-Poster Bed" after Frida Kahlo’s “The Dream” 1940.
  19. Beltway Poetry Quarterly, Museum Issue, Winter 2009 poem: "Nude Descending in All Directions"
  20. Dead Mule School of Southern Poetry 2008 poems: "Near the Park" and "Christmas in Bolivia"
  21. Dead Mule School of Southern Poetry 2008 poems: "Peace Offering", "Green Burial" and "Prid Pergonia"
  22. Dead Mule School of Southern Poetry 2008 poems: "Red Building in Forest", "Caught Littering by the Law" and "Snipped"
  23. Eclectica Magazine poem: "January's Resolution"
  24. www.terrain.org #21 2008 poems: "Do You Know About the Raintree?"
  25. www.terrain.org #25 2010 poems & audio: "Two Voices: Wizard of Horticulture" and "Two Voices: Roots" with Kera O'Bryon
  26. The Other Voices International Cyber-Anthology #31 poems: "Crossing a Rappahannock River Bridge", "Baiting My Hook, I Try Again" and "Lately I Have Been Too Wrapped Up"
  27. The Other Voices International Cyber-Anthology #31 poems: "Do You Know About the Raintree?", "All Saints' Day," and "These Flecks of Summer"
  28. Rei Berroa Curriculum Vitae, George Mason University
  29. Colección Libros de la Luna, Vol. No. 2
  30. Tipton Poetry Review poem: "The Miner's Son"
  31. kasen renga Japanese poetry form
  32. "The Creative Process of Poetry Writing" issue. author credit: Carolyn Kreiter-Kurylo
  33. Virginia Poets Laureate at the University of Mary Washington Reunion Day, June 3, 2011 Video. Three Poets Laureate: Carolyn Kreiter-Foronda, Claudia Emerson and Kelly Cherry
  34. Virginia Law and Library of Congress List of Poets Laureate of Virginia
  35. Chesapeake Bay Writers homepage
  36. 'West Springfield High to Celebrate Carolyn Kreiter-Foronda Day'. October 27, 2006
  37. George Mason Distinguished Alumni of the Year Award 2007
  38. University of Mary Washington Distinguished Alumni of the Year Award 2007
  39. Virginia Board of Education
  40. National League of American Pen Women
  41. The Poetry Society of Virginia website ~ Adult Poetry Contest
  42. Virginia Foundation for the Humanities, Humanities Feature Bureau, September 29, 2006. Virginia Poet Laureate by Sondra Woodward. Audio Interview.
  43. Poetry Society of Virginia website ~ officers
  44. http://www.lib.umd.edu/Guests/KAP/ Katherine Anne Porter Society
  45. r.kv.r.y. quarterly literary journal, "An Interview with Carolyn Kreiter-Foronda" with Mary Akers. Spring 2011 interview
  46. r.kv.r.y. quarterly literary journal. Spring 2011 Poem: "Young Dimas Rosas, Deceased at Age Three, 1937"
  47. r.kv.r.y. quarterly literary journal. Spring 2011 Poem: "Two Voices: My Nurse and I"
  48. "Student Inspired by Poetry Lecture" by Margo Thomas. Virginia Intermountain College, November 10, 2010. lecture review
  49. AUDIO "An Interview with Carolyn Kreiter-Foronda" with Keri Douglas, April 10, 2009. livewirepress
  50. AUDIO "An Interview with Carolyn Kreiter-Foronda" with Keri Douglas, April 10, 2009.
  51. Southside Sentinel, March 20, 2008. "Poet Laureate Pens New Book"
  52. Richmond Dispatch. April 13, 2008 video.
  53. Daily Press. April 27, 2008, G12. "Near-Death Experience Fuels Author’s Exploration of Life."
  54. Mason Spirit, Spring 2007. "Alumna of the Year"
  55. Daily Press. April 28, 2007, B5. "Learn a Lot from a Laureate."
  56. "UMW to Honor Distinguished Alumni during Reunion Weekend." UMW News. June 1, 2007. article
  57. Daily Press, June 24, 2007. "Poet Laureate’s Website Highlights Virginia Poets."
  58. The Mason Gazette, June 30, 2006. "Mason Alumna is New Virginia Poet Laureate" article
  59. Southside Sentinel, July 6, 2006. "Governor Names Hardyville Writer Virginia Poet Laureate."
  60. Daily Press. July 18, 19, 2006, C1–C2. "Mid-pen Poet Gets State Honors"
  61. Southside Sentinel, September 21, 2006. "Lions Club."
  62. Virginia Foundation for the Humanities, Humanites Feature Bureau September 29, 2006. "Virginia Poet Laureate" by Sondra Woodward. Transcript.
  63. Mason Spirit, Fall 2006. "A Way With Words"
  64. "Laureate Comes Home." The Springfield Connection. November 23–29, 2006 article
  65. Bulgarian Diplomatic Review
  66. The Washington Post. August 6, 1981, VA-11 "Nursing Home Poets Rediscover ‘Self-Worth."

External links

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