Kristin Naca (born

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

) is a Latina and Fillipina American poet.

Life and education

Naca grew up in northern

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

. She has a B.A. from the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seattle a ...

, an MFA from the

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a public state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The university is composed of 17 undergraduate and graduate schools and colleges at its urban Pittsburgh campus, home to the universit ...

, and a Ph.D. in English from

University of Nebraska A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the ...

. Her poems have appeared in ''Poetry'', ''ART PAPERS'' ''Bloom'', ''Harpur Palate'', ''Indiana Review'', ''Prairie Schooner'', ''Octopus Magazine'', ''Seattle Review'', ''Poetry Northwest'', and ''Rio Grande Review''. Naca is a member of the prestigious

Macondo Writers Workshop The Macondo Writers Workshop is an association of socially-engaged master's level writers working to advance creativity, foster generosity, and serve community. Founded in 1995 by writer Sandra Cisneros and named after the town in Gabriel García ...

, the workshop founded by Sandra Cisneros. She served as Writer In Residence with Minnesota Prison Writing Workshops. She lives in

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

Firing and subsequent lawsuit against Macalester College

In 2015, Naca was fired from her position as an Assistant Professor of Poetry at Macalester College due to alleged sexual misconduct reported by a former student. Naca sued Macalester in 2016, arguing that her firing was for discriminatory reasons, due to a disability and her status as a woman, a lesbian, a Filipina and Puerto Rican, and a Santeria priestess. In 2018, the judge in the case cleared Macalester of wrongdoing in the dismissal. On January 16, 2020, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the lower court's dismissal of the lawsuit, holding that " en assuming Naca made a prima facie case, this court concludes, on de novo review, that Macalester articulates a legitimate, non-discriminatory reason for termination—her sexual relationship with Doe—that Naca does not counter with sufficient evidence of pretext".

Awards

* mtvU National Poetry Series Prize. selected by Yusef Komunyakaa * 2008 National Poetry Series * Lannan Residency Fellowship * Bread Loaf Fellowship * Hedgebrook women writers in residence program on Whidbey Island

Works

"Baptism", ''The Blind Chatelaine's Keys''
* * , a Lambda Literary Award Finalist in 2010

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Naca, Kristin Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Poets from Washington, D.C. University of Cincinnati alumni University of Pittsburgh alumni University of Nebraska alumni American lesbian writers American LGBT poets American women poets American Santeríans 21st-century American women writers