Internship Program in the Literary Arts Honors Anne Greene
Wesleyan University has announced the creation of the Anne Greene Internships in the Literary Arts, a $1 million endowed fund that will support 15 to 20 students each year pursuing summer opportunities in media, publishing, and journalism. The fund honors the life and legacy of Anne F. Greene, University Professor of English, Emerita, who passed away on May 12.
The new internship program is designed to give students access to formative real-world experiences that will help them launch careers in the literary arts—a focus of Greene’s nearly five decades at Wesleyan. The internships will be awarded to students seeking to explore writing-focused professions and gain firsthand experience in the literary field.
“I can think of no finer example of a life pursued with joyful purpose than Anne Greene’s,” said Wesleyan President Michael S. Roth ’78. “Her genuine enthusiasm for the writer’s craft, gracious good nature, and most of all, the fulfillment she experienced watching her students excel, should be an inspiration to us all. The Anne Greene Internships in the Literary Arts are a fitting tribute to a gifted educator and advocate, who worked tirelessly to help writers at Wesleyan realize their ambitions.”
The internship program builds upon the foundation Greene helped establish through her leadership at the University. With support from trustee John Shapiro ’74 and trustee emerita Shonni Silverberg ’76, Greene laid the groundwork for the Shapiro Center for Creative Writing and Criticism in 2009, which would become a thriving hub for student writers across disciplines. The Shapiro Center for Creative Writing and Criticism offers master classes, writers-in-residence fellowships, speaker series, and professional opportunities to develop students’ voices and prepare them for careers in creative writing and criticism.
Merve Emre, appointed director of the Shapiro Center in 2023, praised Greene’s lasting impact. “Anne Greene was a beloved teacher, mentor, director, and colleague,” she said. “The Shapiro Center, which she helped to found and develop, has become one of the fastest growing units in the University. The center’s internship program honors Anne’s extraordinary legacy by providing students with opportunities to connect their Wesleyan education to the broader world of criticism and journalism.”
Over the course of her 47-year career at Wesleyan, Greene was a mentor to generations of students. Many credit her guidance, generosity, and devotion as essential to their development as writers. In 2006, she was awarded the Binswanger Prize for Excellence in Teaching.
“Anne loved Wesleyan, and she loved all aspects of writing and reading,” said Amy Bloom ’75, Shapiro-Silverberg Professor of Creative Writing, Emerita. “She loved creating connections (ours lasted almost 50 years), and she loved creating opportunities—just like this new one, named for her, the Anne Greene Internships in the Literary Arts. It is a lovely and necessary tribute to an extraordinary friend, colleague, and master teacher.”
A celebration of Greene’s life will be held on campus this fall. Gifts in her memory may be made to the Anne Greene Internships in the Literary Arts Fund.
