Eli Goldblatt is Professor Emeritus of English at Temple University and former director of New City Writing, an institute focused on community-related literacy projects in North Philadelphia. He earned his PhD in composition and rhetoric at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. His scholarly books include Literacy as Conversation: Learning Networks in Philadelphia and Arkansas (written with David Jolliffe); Writing Home: A Literacy Autobiography; and Because We Live Here: Sponsoring Literacy Beyond the College Curriculum, which won the 2008 National Council of Writing Program Administrators’ Best Book Award. He has won best essay of the year awards from both College Composition and Communications and College English. The 2015 Conference on Community Writing presented him with the Outstanding Scholar Award. Goldblatt’s poems have appeared since 1973 in small literary journals such as Hambone, 6ix, Louisiana Review, and Another Chicago Magazine. His forthcoming poetry collection is From Away and earlier books include For Instance, Sessions 1-62, Speech Acts, and Without a Trace. His two books for children are Leo Loves Round and Lissa and the Moon’s Sheep.
"“As an admirer of Eli Goldblatt’s original, groundbreaking, and beautifully crafted written work in composition, I think this focused book of his collected essays will be extremely compelling reading for people in this field”. Russel Durst, Professor, University of Cincinnati ""Goldblatt’s perspective, his embeddedness in his place, community, and culture, and his range of topical interests is truly unique. He is a teacher, poet, essayist, activist, literacy scholar, and publisher of great importance. I don’t know anyone else whose work can simultaneously occupy so many vantage points so deeply and well."" Paula Mathieu, Associate Professor, Boston College"