Freesia McKee

Meet Freesia McKee

• M.F.A. from Florida International University
• B.A. from Warren Wilson College

I teach the course “Ecopoetics: Artistic and Ecological Connections” and work on two projects: a collection of poems about “multiple Midwests” and how the specific places we live and the identities we hold vary our experiences of being Midwesterners; and examining the city of Miami’s juxtapositions of climate crisis and splendor from the point of view of a city bus passenger. I was born and raised in Milwaukee. I have a BA in gender and women’s studies from Warren Wilson College and an MFA in creative writing from Florida International University. Most recently, I worked as an instructor of English at Western Illinois University. I have also taught writing at Johnson & Wales University, Florida International University and through many community organizations. I write about power and place through poetry, creative prose, hybrid work, book reviews and literary criticism. I won the 2018 Patricia Goedicke Prize in Poetry and a 2020 Christopher F. Kelly Award for Poetry through the Academy of American Poets.