AWP Announces Change to Autonomous Non-Profit Model

Association for Writers and Writing Programs will spin off from partner universities, keep location in UMD’s Discovery District.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The Association for Writers & Writing Programs (AWP) announces that they will be changing to an autonomous non-profit model and will no longer be affiliated with a university. AWP has been affiliated with a college or university since its inception in 1967, most recently with the University of Maryland, and with George Mason University for 23 years prior.

“Our organization is now at a key turning point; we’re financially and institutionally strong enough to become autonomous, and that’s a natural next step in the evolution of a non-profit of our size and stature,” said Dr. Chloe Schwenke, Interim Executive Director, AWP. “We are thankful to the University of Maryland and others for their partnership over the years and for supporting us through our growth. We look forward to a continuing strong relationship with the university, especially given our proximity to campus in our current location.”

“We are pleased that AWP, while undertaking this step in their development, will remain near the University and continue to build and enhance academic, intellectual and career-focused partnerships with UMD,” said Bonnie Thornton Dill, dean of the College of Arts and Humanities. “They are an important voice in advancing the arts and humanities among our students, in our community and nationwide, and we look forward to seeing what they will achieve in this new chapter and how we can support each other's work.” 

For the past 50 years, AWP has grown to support 550 college and university creative writing programs, 150 writers’ conferences and centers, and 50,000 writers. AWP works with a growing number of allied literary organizations to build audiences for contemporary literature. Its conference attracts 12,000 each year, and AWP’s magazine has a growing circulation of tens of thousands of readers.