Dear Friends and Supporters of PiFO,
The start of classes at the Corban extension in the Oregon State Correctional Institution (OSCI) have been delayed to mid-November due to some COVID issues. Notwithstanding this delay, I am excited to introduce you to another Corban instructor, Professor Gina Ochsner. She is a gifted author, speaker and teacher.
Professor Ochsner received her undergraduate degree from George Fox University, her M.A. degree from Iowa State University and her M.F.A. degree from the University of Oregon. She teaches writing and literature courses as Corban’s Writer-in-Residence. She also directed the annual Portals Writing Conference hosted at Corban for local high school honors students who were interested in creative expression through writing and poetry.
Currently, Professor Ochsner divides her time between teaching at Corban and at Seattle Pacific’s low residency MFA program. She is the author of the short story collections, The Necessary Grace to Fall, which received the Flannery O’Connor Award for Short Fiction and the story collection of People I Wanted to Be. Her novel The Russian Dreambook of Color and Flight was long-listed for the Orange Award (UK) and her novel The Hidden Letters of Velta B. (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt 2016) was recently released in Germany (DTV).
Professor Ochsner had this to say about teaching at the Corban extension in OSCI:
“I’m excited about this new opportunity to serve the students at OSCI. I love teaching students of all ages and am thrilled to have this chance to work with students who are both highly motivated and eager to learn. This, I think, will be an adventure for all of us!” She will be teaching College Writing II.
Please continue to pray for our students at OSCI. It has been over 7 months since they have had any face-to-face visits with family and/or friends.
As the year 2020 nears an end, I hope that PiFO will also be in your prayers as you consider year-end giving. There will be more to come on this as we get closer to the new year.
Finally, thank you for your prayerful and financial support throughout these challenging days. I am reminded of 1 Thessalonians 5:16: “Be joyful always, pray continually, and give thanks in all circumstances…”
Grateful as always,
