Oakland, CA - Juliana Spahr, Mills College associate professor of English, has published The Transformation, a book of prose with Atelos Press. The book tells the story of three people who move between Hawaii and New York in order to speak broadly about how issues of colonialism and the at-risk natural environment of islands are interconnected and shape our relations with others.

The Transformation delves into cultural geography, ecology, anti-colonialism, queer theory, and the war with Iraq to suggest that these disparate concerns might shape each other more than people realize. Woven into this narrative are discussions about the academy, poetry, and language politics.

In 2005, Spahr won a prestigious fellowship from the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) to study “The Crisis of Language in 20th Century Literature.”

Among her most recent works are: This Connection of Everyone with Lungs (University of California, 2005), Gentle Now, Don’t Add to Heartache (Subpress Self-Publish or Perish, 2004), and Things of Each Possible Relation Hashing Against One Another (Palm Press, 2004).

Spahr received her BA from Bard College in languages and literatures, and her PhD in English from the State University of New York at Buffalo. She has taught at Mills since 2003, and has also taught at Siena College (1996-7), and the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

Mills College is a nationally renowned, independent liberal arts college offering innovative degree programs for undergraduate women, and graduate degree and certificate programs for women and men. Consistently recognized as one of the top 100 liberal arts colleges in the nation by U.S. News & World Report, Mills currently ranks among the top 20 most diverse liberal arts colleges. The New York Times recently selected Mills as one of three leading California colleges for students to consider.

In 2006, the Washington Monthly College Rankings named Mills a leading liberal arts college based on community service, research spending, quality of preparation for graduate education, and social mobility. In addition, The Princeton Review’s annual guide, the Best 361 Colleges (2007) included Mills for the second year in a row among top U.S. institutions offering students an outstanding undergraduate education.
 
Nestled in the foothills of Oakland, California, on 135 lush acres, Mills provides a dynamic liberal arts education fostering women’s leadership, social responsibility, and creativity.

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Deborah Dallinger
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