"Those Who Can, Teach" Inprint brochure, [approximately 1986].

Recognized as a Top Creative Writing Program

It was not long before UH's program was recognized as one of the top programs in the country, a status that is reflected in the media of the period.

In 1984, Houston magazine states, "A community of writers is becoming established here, due largely to the University of Houston's writing program." The Washington Post recognized it as one of the nation's most ambitious creative writing programs. A 1985 article in University of Florida's Today magazine states that UH's program is one of the top programs in the country, comparable with Columbia and Iowa, and in 1989, Esquire magazine published a diagram of the literary universe with Houston and Columbia as "moons orbiting the original creative writing planet, Iowa."

Houston Reading Series Posters, Fall 1985/Spring 1986 and Fall 1989/Spring 1990.

These two posters document the schedule of readers that included the finest writers of the time--many of whom were UH creative writing program faculty. The University of Houston, PEN-Southwest, and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston sponsored the series, which was held at the MFAH's Brown Auditorium. Art by Donald Barthelme.

"Some of these Books . . ." Inprint brochure, [approximately 1989].

This fundraising pamphlet identifies Inprint's primary activity as awarding fellowships to UH creative writing program graduate students. It explains that a teaching assistant's pay is low and without additional funding, graduate students often need to take a second job, which is "detrimental to the central task of learning to write." Inprint's fellowships supplemented the students' assistantships during the first two years of the program and replaced them "during the final period of study to allow total concentration on writing of the creative thesis."

Letter from James H. Pickering, Dean of the College of Humanities, to Glenn Cambor, Chairman of Inprint, Inc., October 19, 1987.

In the letter, Pickering thanks Cambor and Inprint, Inc. for their support of the creative writing program.

Memorandum from James H. Pickering to Richard Van Horn, UH President, October 16, 1987.

The memo details the distribution of funds that Inprint, Inc. provided for the UH creative writing program for the years 1987 and 1988. The majority of the $52,000 went towards six Inprint fellowships ($30,000).