School of Letters Staff and Administration

Administrative oversight of the program is provided by the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, under whose authority the program operates. The dean appoints the program’s director and faculty. In their oversight of the program the dean is assisted by a standing committee, the School of Letters Committee, chaired by the director of the School of Letters and consisting of the chair of the Department of English, director of the Teacher Education program, the associate dean of the College, and two faculty members elected by the College Faculty.

Justin Taylor is the author of the memoir Riding with the Ghost, published by Random House in 2020. He is also the author of three books of fiction: the story collections Everything Here Is the Best Thing Ever (2010), Flings (2014), and the novel The Gospel of Anarchy (2011). His work has appeared in the New Yorker, Harper's, BOMB, the Sewanee Review, the Oxford American, and Bookforum. He has taught writing at the graduate and undergraduate level in programs across the U.S., including Columbia University, the University of Southern Mississippi, and the University of Montana. He lives in Portland, Oregon.

April Alvarez is the Associate Director for the School of Letters. She worked previously in Sewanee's Alumni Office. A native of North Carolina, she holds a BA in English and Journalism from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. April received her MFA in 2015 from the School of Letters. April worked for the National Geographic Society before moving to Sewanee, where she lives with her husband, photographer Stephen Alvarez. They have two children, both Sewanee graduates. 

Mary Bullard is a 2023 graduate of Sewanee, where she earned her degree in psychology with minors in French and art history. She also took a lot of English classes, and co-directed a theme house for creative writing. She enjoys reading, cooking, and going on walks around campus. 

Phone: (931) 598-1636

Email: sletters@sewanee.edu