Kwame Dawes, George Holmes Distinguished Professor of English and Glenna Luschei Editor of Prairie Schooner, and Lorna Dawes, associate professor of University Libraries, are leading an international team in expanding the African Poetry Digital Portal. This online tool documents the work of African poets and provides digital access to related creative and intellectual artifacts, materials and research. The team is using a $750,000 grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to launch the portal into its next phase, which will expand research and scholarship related to African poetry. They also are collaborating with other institutions to create a digital collections hub that provides access to materials held by institutions worldwide. The initiative is aimed at bringing to light the rich and sophisticated poetic practices and traditions that have long existed in African societies but are not always well understood.
