Laurie Sheck

Sheck earned her Master of Fine Arts in poetry at the University of Iowa.[3]

Sheck has been the recipient of fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, the Radcliffe Insitute for Advance Study at Harvard University, the Ingram Merrill Foundation, and others.[4]

Sheck's poems have been featured in The Pushcart Prize series three times and two volumes of Best American Poetry.[5]

Sheck previously taught at University of Iowa, New York University, Princeton University and now teaches at The New School.[3]

While discussing her works of poetry with Susan Wheeler of BOMB Magazine, Sheck stated, "Intensity is one of the things we respond to in art—and a sense of necessity, just as form in many ways grows out of the necessity of the poem."[3]

Her philosophy of writing is expressed in her classroom and interviews, advising her students about nontraditional forms of writing, "if you create a world on the page in which things that seem not to hold together can interact with each other, they can hold, and part of what’s holding, part of what’s interesting, is the way that things don’t directly hook up."[3]

In 2019, Sheck used a racial slur against Blacks in a class while citing the work of James Baldwin, specifically, "I am Not Your Negro". Sheck shared that Baldwin had actually used the N-word in the original title and proceeded to use the original word to speak of the book.[6]

Sheck faced backlash after a white student protested in class. Sheck told the student that's "one school of thought", going on to defend her reasoning behind the use by saying, "As writers, words are all we have." And "we have to give [Baldwin] credit that he used the word he did on purpose."[6]

Her position at The New School was under investigation by the university after two students filed complaints against her. As the investigation period closed, The New School wrote to Sheck stating, "after carefully considering the complaints and reviewing the evidence, we have determined that you did not violate the university's policy on discrimination", and saying that open "and robust discussion of often difficult issues is and has always been central to our mission as a university, as is our commitment to provide a learning environment that is effective in educating our students." Those principles are "foundational to our teaching and learning, as we strive to ensure that all members of our community are able to advance their intellectual, creative and professional pursuits."[6]

In the same year, PEN America released a public statement criticizing any potential threat to Sheck's career as a professor.[7] PEN declared that imposing punishment on Sheck "represents a troubling threat to academic freedom and free speech in the classroom".

Jonathan Friedman, project director for campus free speech at PEN America, said, "...this is a case where intent matters. There is a distinction to be made between a racial slur wielded against someone and a quote used for pedagogical purposes in a class on James Baldwin. The New School cannot and must not discipline a professor for speech that is protected by the principle of academic freedom.”[7]

Sheck went back to teaching in the fall semester of 2019 after the investigation was closed.

Sheck has written the following works:[8]

• Island of the Mad: A Novel (2016)
• A Monster's Notes (2009)
• Captivity (2007)
• The Willow Grove (1996)
• Amaranth (1981)

A Monster's Notes was referred to as "utterly astonishing and not to be missed" by the Kirkus Reviews and as "an intellectually thrilling, stunningly original tale" by BOMB Magazine.[9][10]