UofM’s Marcus Wicker selected as prestigious Harvard Radcliffe Institute 2023-24 Fellow

Worldwide cohort brings an array of projects, from exploring the far reaches of space to saving climate-endangered frogs.

May 18, 2023 — Marcus Wicker, poet and associate professor of English at the University of Memphis, was named a member of Harvard Radcliffe Institute’s 2023-24 class of fellows, a cohort whose projects contend with the urgent, the beautiful and the vast: from reckoning with the challenges of climate change to creating digital models of iconic Italian violins to detecting distant galaxies.

A Radcliffe fellowship offers scholars in the humanities, sciences, social sciences and arts – as well as writers, journalists and other distinguished professionals – a rare chance to pursue ambitious projects for a full year in a vibrant interdisciplinary setting amid the resources of Harvard. The 2023-24 fellows represent only 3.3% of the many applications that Radcliffe received.

“I'm so excited to represent the University of Memphis and the City in Cambridge next year,” said Wicker. “One of the most precious gifts available to a writer is that of time and institutional support. Time to read and discover new writers and thinkers whose words inspire, undo and remake me. Time to incubate a project while disappearing into the work.

“A central theme of my new collection is connection – learning how to care for one another within the context of an increasingly fractured world. To receive this distinguished honor and join the rich history of award-winning literature fellows past and present is incredibly humbling. To share in the experience with 50 inspiring humanities scholars, scientists and artists is exactly what I need right now. I’m grateful to the Radcliffe Institute for the opportunity and grateful to the University for the support.

As a Mary I. Bunting Fellow, at the Radcliffe Institute, Wicker will complete his third collection of poetry, Dear Mothership. Utilizing current events, personal narrative, empathy, hip hop and speculative narrative as a backdrop for poems about the absurdity of black life in the modern era, the book works to explore the strain of social discord and to rediscover joy after a season of loss.

Wicker is among a cadre of fellows who will spend the year at Harvard Radcliffe exploring a large variety of topics across disciplines.

“This year’s cohort promises, once again, to accomplish incredible things,” said Tomiko Brown-Nagin, dean of the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, Daniel P.S. Paul Professor of Constitutional Law at Harvard Law School, and professor of history in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. “As ever, we have outstanding fellows with expertise in a wide range of fields. Many are grappling with some of the most urgent challenges facing humanity.”

Former fellows include Elizabeth Warren, Zadie Smith, Ibram X. Kendi and Pulitzer Prize winner Jericho Brown.

“I look forward to welcoming the new class of fellows,” said Claudia Rizzini, executive director of the Fellowship Program. “I look forward to fostering a community that transcends individual disciplines and is fueled by collective intellectual energy and creativity.”

A full list of incoming 2023–2024 Radcliffe fellows can be found here .