Steven P. Schneider

Education
Dr. Schneider earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English, graduating cum laude at Syracuse University in 1973. He earned a Master of Fine Arts degree in Creative Writing at the University of Iowa four years later. In 1986, he earned a doctorate in English and American Literature at the University of Iowa.

Poetry Literature

 * Schneider, Steven P. and Schneider, Reefka. Borderlines: Drawing Border Lives (Fronteras: dibujando las vidas fronterizas), twenty-five poems in English and Spanish about the U.S.-Mexico border accompanied by twenty-five drawings by Reefka Schneider. Wings Press, San Antonio, Texas, March, 2010.

Borderlines is a collaborative effort between Dr. Schneider and his artist-wife, Reefka Schneider. Featuring 25 drawings in charcoal, conte crayons, and pastels, Borderlines pairs portraits of people who live and work along the U.S.-Mexico border with bilingual poems that have been inspired by the art. They have also made it into a traveling art exhibit and used to create teaching workshops. It’s been reviewed by several media, including The San Antonio Express-News, the Library Journal, and Texas Border Business.


 * Schneider, Steven P. Unexpected Guests. Collection of poems. San Francisco: Blue Light Press, 2008.

This book of poetry features a collection of poems that explores the meaning of faith, remembrance and creativity.


 * Schneider, Steven P. Prairie Air Show. Texas City, Texas:
 * Hurakan Publication, College of the Mainland, chapbook of poems, spring 2000.

Written Criticisms

 * Ed. Complexities of Motion: New Essays on A.R. Ammons's Long Poems. Madison: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 1999.


 * A.R. Ammons and The Poetics of Widening Scope. Madison: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 1994.

Nonfiction Literature

 * Seiderman, Arthur, and Steven P. Schneider. The Athletic Eye. New York: Hearst Books, 1983.

Scholarly Articles

 * “The New Accent in American Poetry: Tato Laviera’s “AmeRícan” in the Context of American Poetry.”Bucknell University Press.


 * Essay collection edited by Stephanie Alvarez and William Luis, forthcoming 2011.


 * “Ted Kooser.” American Writers Series, Ed. Jay Parini, New York: Scribner’s, September 2009. 115-130.


 * “The Continuing Radiance of A.R. Ammons,” Review essay, Mississippi Quarterly, Winter 2005-2006, Spring 2006, Vol. 59, No.1, No. 2, Winter 2005-06, Spring 2006.


 * “Defining the Canon of New Formalist Poetry.” Poetry Matters. The Poetry Center Newsletter. West Chester University. Number 2, February 2005.


 * “Jewish American Poetry: Poems, Commentary, and Reflections” Shofar: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Jewish Studies - Volume 23, Number 2, Winter 2005. 127-129


 * “A.R. Ammons’s ‘Defense of Poetry’”: Epoch, Cornell University, Ed. Roger Gilbert, v 52, #3, 2004. 454-464.


 * “Gary Soto,” Encyclopedia of American Literature, Oxford University Press, 2004.


 * "Brad Leithauser." Volume on New Formalism, Ed. Jonathan Barron and Bruce Meyer, Dictionary of Literary Biography, 2003


 * “Review essay on Marjorie Agosín,” Chasqui: Revista De Literatura Latinoamericana, Volume 31, Number 1, May 2002. 104-109.


 * "Louis Simpson." American Writers Series, Supplement VIII, Ed. Jay Parini, New York: Scribner's, November 2001. 265-283.


 * "Poetry, Midrash, and Feminism." Tikkun Magazine, San Francisco, Summer 2001. 61-64.


 * “Contemporary Jewish-American Women’s Poetry”: Marge Piercy and Jacqueline Osherow.” Judaism. Spring 2001. 199-210.


 * "Prairie Reclamation Project: The Poetry of Twyla Hansen and Don Welch." A Prairie Mosaic.  Ed. Susanne K. George and Steven Rothenberger.   Kearney: University of Nebraska at Kearney, 2000. 152-157.


 * "The Long Poem as a Geological Force." Complexities of Motion: New Essays on A.R. Ammons's Long Poems. Ed. Steven P. Schneider. Madison: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 1999. 138-166.


 * “From the Wind to the Earth: An Interview with A.R. Ammons." Complexities of Motion: New Essays on A.R. Ammons's Long Poems. Ed. Steven P. Schneider. Madison: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 1999. 325-349.


 * "Spotted Horses," "Faulkner and The Lost Generation." A William Faulkner Encyclopedia. Ed. Robert Hamblin and Charles Peek. New York: Greenwood Press, 1999.  254-257, 381-382.


 * "The Great Plains and Prairies," "Poets to Come," "The Prairie-Grass Dividing," "Louis Simpson." Walt Whitman: An Encyclopedia. Ed. J.R. LeMaster and Donald D. Kummings. New York: Garland, 1998. 259- 260, 529, 539, 637.


 * "On Sifting Through A.R. Ammons's Garbage." North Carolina Literary Review 11.2 (1995): 175-182.


 * "Coming Home: An Interview with Rita Dove." The Iowa Review 19.3 (1989): 112-123.


 * "The Writing Institute: Professional Writing in a Liberal Art Context." Liberal Arts and Professional Growth: Conference Proceedings. Ed. David M. Atkinson and Janice C. Barker. Tacoma: Pacific Lutheran University, 1988.


 * "An Interview with Louis Simpson."The Wordsworth Circle 13. 2 (1982): 99-104.

Non-Fiction Essays and Articles

 * “The U.S. / Mexico Border: Beyond Fear,” The Iowa Source, July 2010.
 * “Books, Art and Culture Come to Life along the Border,” Hispanic Outlook, August 11, 2008.
 * “Teaching Culturally Relevant Literature,” Hispanic Outlook, April 10, 2006.
 * “Crossing Borders with Poetry and Art,” Chronicle Review, The Chronicle of Higher Education, March 24, 2006.
 * “Running for the Long Haul,” View, July / August, 1991.
 * “Pumping Iron: Aerobic Exercise Finds a Partner,” View, September / October, 1991.
 * “Sephardic Seattle,” Seattle Weekly, August 23, 1989.
 * “Flex Your Eyes,” The Washington Post Magazine, September 18, 1983.
 * “What You See Is What You Hit,” The Philadelphia Inquirer Magazine, August 14, 1983.
 * “Swept Away,” The Philadelphia Inquirer Magazine, July 25, 1982.

Current Position
As the Director of New Programs and Special Projects at UTPA, Dr. Schneider is in charge of forming and implementing interdisciplinary as well as new programs for the College of Arts and Humanities, as well as community outreach programs for literacy, teacher development, and college readiness standards. He also directs the program development of FESTIBA – UTPA’s annual Festival of Books and Arts. This is a university and community week-long program celebrating the arts and humanities.

Dr. Schneider also develops key fundraising partnerships in support of FESTIBA with government, corporations, foundations, and non-profit organizations, including: Congressman Reuben Hinojosa, The Monitor, Texas Book Festival, Reading Is Fundamental, Gear-Up, Scholastic, Region One Educational Service Center. Dr. Schneider also established the Creative Arts and Writing Institute in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico.

He has raised money for the university through grant writing, including two Big Read grants from the National Endowment of the Arts. In the vein of literacy, he develops and coordinates the Reading Rock Stars program in conjunction with the Texas Book Festival in Region One public schools.

He is also a professor in the Department of English, teaching courses on contemporary American poetry, multiethnic literatures of the United States, and creative writing.

Previous Positions
Chair and Professor (tenured), Department of English, The University of Texas-Pan American, August 2001 – June 2007.

Associate Professor (tenured), Department of English, University of Nebraska at Kearney, August 1995 – June 2001. University of Nebraska System Graduate College Faculty Fellow.

Graduate Program Director, Department of English, University of Nebraska at Kearney, Sept.1997-August 2000

Director, Campus Writing Center and Lecturer in Department of Liberal Studies, The University of Washington, Bothell, 1991-1995.

Assistant Professor, Department of English, University of Puget Sound, 1987–1990.

Academic Awards

 * NEA Big Read Grant, 2008-2009
 * NEA Big Read Grant 2009-2010
 * “Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers”, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007.

Literary Awards

 * Nebraska Arts Council Fellowship in Poetry Spring, 1997.
 * Anna Davidson Rosenberg Award for Poems on the Jewish Experience. Awarded by Judah L. Magnes Museum, Berkeley, CA. October, 1994.