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Syracuse University established a creative writing scholarship honoring alumnus Tom Walsh through a donation from another alumnus, Jonathan Resnick, according to an SU news release on Monday. 

Tom Walsh, former senior vice president of advancement and external affairs at SU, died from cancer in May 2019.

The Thomas J. Walsh Scholarship will be awarded to one creative writing major in the English department in the College of Arts and Sciences, according to the release. The creative writing program, which started this fall, is a 30-credit major focusing on the development and creation of fiction, nonfiction and poetry writing skills. 

Sarah Harwell, associate director of the creative writing program, said the scholarship strengthens the program and expands the program’s diversity. 

“The creative writing major is founded on the tenet that great literature needs a diverse group of voices in order to portray a wide variety of human experiences,” Harwell said in the release. 

The news release said that Walsh was a longtime supporter of arts and storytelling, and he worked closely with Syracuse Stage while he was working toward his master’s in the College of Visual and Performing Arts. 

He worked at SU in numerous positions, including an events administrator for the Division of Student Affairs, vice president of leadership gifts and senior vice president of institutional advancement. Walsh retired in 2017 from his position as senior vice president of advancement and external affairs. 

Harwell said in the release that the scholarship will allow students to tell their stories at SU and learn from faculty authors. Karin Ruhlandt, the dean of Arts and Sciences, said the college’s programs build critical thinking and creative skills in all students, especially in the creative writing program. 

“Faculty and students seek to address the challenges we face today through the art of writing,” Ruhlandt said in the news release. “The scholarship in Tom’s name will support the creative work of A&S student writers long into the future.”

Published on November 15, 2021 at 10:13 pm

Contact Karoline: kaleonar@syr.edu