LAKELAND, Fla. (April 5, 2005) - Florida Southern's English department unveils the 2005 issue of "Cantilevers: A Journal of the Arts" on April 7 at 7:00 p.m. in the Eleanor Searle Drawing Room. Peter Meinke, recognized and published poet, will be the evening's featured speaker. The public is welcome to attend. 

Meinke, currently living in St. Petersburg, Fla., has published 12 books of poetry, six in the prestigious Pitt Poetry Series. Selections of his work have appeared in The New Yorker, The Atlantic, The Georgia Review, The New Republic, and Poetry. His collection of stories, "The Piano Tuner," received the 1986 Flannery O'Connor Award, and "Zinc Fingers" received the 2001 Southeastern Booksellers Association Award for Poetry. Other recognitions for his poetry include the Olivet and Paumonak Awards, and the Emily Dickinson, Gustav Davidson, and Lucille Medwick prizes from the Poetry Society of America, as well as two NEA Fellowships in Poetry. He taught at Eckerd College, where he was director of the Writing Workshop for 27 years, and has been writer-in-residence at numerous colleges and universities. Meinke's most notable recent achievements include the translation of his collection of poems entitled "Maples and Oranges" (by IIlya Fonyakov) and its subsequent publication in St. Petersburg, Russia, as well as his being named the Darden Chair in Creative Writing at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Va. 

This year's "Cantilevers" will feature the work of Downing Barnitz, emeritus professor of art at Florida Southern College. Barnitz grew up in Atlanta, Ga., in a family of artists, illustrators, architects, writers, and poets. His family permitted him, at a young age, to paint large murals on his bedroom walls. He earned a bachelor of fine arts degree at the University of Georgia, and a bachelor of fine arts and master of fine arts degrees at Temple University. He taught art and art history at Florida Southern College for most of his career and served as chair of the department from 1984 until his retirement in 1999. He has received more than 50 awards for his artwork. His work is included in the permanent collection of Florida Southern College, the Polk Museum of Art, and numerous private collections. Barnitz continues full time with his artwork, teaching, and shows. He is a member of the Florida Artists Group, an organization of professional artists in Florida. He is presently completing a commission of seven large murals in a private building in Lakeland. 

"Cantilevers" features poetry, fiction and art by Florida Southern's students, staff, and alumni. The Wesley Ryals Awards for best fiction and poetry submissions and FSC students writing awards will be presented. 

For more information, please contact Dr. Rebecca Saulsbury at 863-680-4348 or Dr. Bernard Quetchenbach at 863-680-4221.


About Florida Southern College
Founded in 1885, Florida Southern College is a private, comprehensive, United Methodist college with a liberal arts core. The college maintains its commitment to academic excellence through 38 undergraduate majors and distinctive graduate programs in business administration, education, and nursing. Florida Southern has a 14:1 student/faculty ratio, provides strong student/faculty mentorship programs, boasts 24 NCAA Division II national championships, and is ranked by U. S. News and World Report as one of the top ten Southern Comprehensive Colleges-Bachelors. Located on scenic Lake Hollingsworth, Florida Southern is the home of the world's largest single-site collection of Frank Lloyd Wright architecture.