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LITERARY

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VOLUNTEERING

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     The Women's Prison Book Project

     Bright Light Stories in the Night annual event

     East Freedom Library's Banned Book Event-September 2022

     Howling Bird Press volunteer student editor

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COMMITMENTS

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     MN Poetry Out Loud Judge 2022

     Nutshells Writing Collective, ongoing

     Poetry for Healthcare website, defunct

     Witness Writers Workshop, on-going

     Carpenter Nature Center Writing Workshop, organizer

     MN State Arts Board Individual grants 2021, 2022 reviewer

     MIPA Awards: 2020, 2021, 2022, judge

     Current or past member of LOMP: League of Minnesota Poets, Women of                         Words, The Loft Literary Center, AWP, The Academy of American Poets

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FEATURES

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     Opening night feature Natural Heritage Art Centre, November

     Midstream Reading Series reading, September 2022

     Solidary Gallery, East Side Library reading, September 2022

     The Night Heron Barks AWP offsite reading, 2022

     Friends of the Mississippi River 2021 Gala Featured Story

     Belwin Bison 50th Celebration Poetry Reading Summer 2021

     Bakken Museum guest author Women in Science

     HEP Annual Meeting Keynote speaker, 2018

     FOP2 guest speaker

     Err Artists event at Honey, Mpls live poetry reading, 2019

     Contributor for Creatopia Magazine, 2021

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AWARDS

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     Midway Journal Under -1000 prose poetry contest, Finalist, 2022

     International Human Rights Art Festival, Honorable mention 2021, prose

     Recipient of two Nautilus Awards

 

EDUCATION

     Augsburg University MFA in Creative Writing 2019-2021

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PROFESSIONAL

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     Workshop offerings at Natural Heritage Art Center, coming soon 

     Copper Canyon Press Internship Fall 2021-December, 2021

     Coffee House Press Internship Spring 2020

     The Loft Literary Center teacher Summer 2020, CNF

     Editing class with Steve Woodword, The Loft, attendee

     Iowa Writing Festival 2018 with Jude Nutter, attendee

     Taught Write and Stay Writing and Exploring Poetry, WOW Writing Conference           September 2018

     Taught Working with a Publicist at Rosemount Literary Festival, 2018

     Poetry and book club teacher, Creators Space summer 2018, Writing Ambassador 

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FOR FUN

     NaNoWriMo 2017

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ARTIST BIO

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Cole W. Williams is the author of Hear the River Dammed: Poems from the Edge of the Mississippi (Beaver’s Pond Press, 2017) as well as several books for children. Her poems have appeared in various journals, as well as in a number of anthologies. Williams is a graduate from the MFA program at Augsburg University in Minneapolis.

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WATER

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PROFESSIONAL

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     Commissioner, Cottage Grove Parks and Natural Resources Commission, elected           2021 

     co Vice-President of the Board of Managers, South Washington Watershed District         elected 2021-present

     Prior Board member, FOP2 Friends of Pool, 2017-2018

     Prior serving member of the Citizens Advisory Committee for South Washington             Watershed District

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EDUCATION

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     B.S. in Biology, University of Minnesota 

     Minnesota Water Steward graduate from the 2017-2018 program, ongoing
     Aquatic Invasive Species training, U of MN Extensions detector

     MN Master Naturalist Program, Big Woods and Rivers, 2022 

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GRANTS

     Recipient of grants from Clean Water Fund, Washington County Conservation                 District, South Washington Watershed District, NWW Watershed Sub-grant for             restoration through MN Water Stewards

     Wrote and secured a 1Mississippi grant for FOP2

     Installation of a prairie (5,500 sq. ft.) shoreline buffer along the Mississippi River 

     Installation of a broad seed prairie (quarter acres) along Mississippi River

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VOLUNTEERING 

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     Community organizer of Mississippi River cleanups including coordinating                       sponsorship through TerraCycle and Bridgestone

     Organized speakers the 2018 annual Reach the River meeting and Letter Writing

     Avid volunteer for FMR: Friends of the Mississippi River Great River Greening, The       Xerxes Society, Mississippi Park Connection and more 

     Past or current member of LPLA Lake Pepin Legacy Alliance, FOP2, HEP, Great             River Greening, Xerxes Society

     Lead volunteer for Great River Greening restoration events

     Lawn to Legumes coach for funded restoration projects 

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FEATURES 

 

     Friends of the Mississippi River 2021 Gala Featured Story

     Organized Night for the River in St. Louis with Dean Klinkenberg and the Missouri       Coalition for the Environment