Matthew Ussia, Director of First Year Writing and an Associate Professor in the English and Theater Arts Department at Duquesne University, visited campus on Feb. 13.
He read poetry from his new book “Saturday Night on Earth.”
The event was held in the Black Box Theatre and was sponsored by the SFU English Department.
Ussia graduated from Saint Francis with a bachelor’s degree in English in 1999 before continuing his education at Indiana University of Pennsylvania.
Ussia blends his experiences, his love for punk rock music, and the stories he heard while growing up in “Saturday Night on Earth.”
“I couldn’t have written this book without the creative community,” said Ussia.
Lisa Beiswenger was a classmate of Ussia’s during their studies at Saint Francis and attended last week’s event. She currently serves as an Assistant Professor in English and World Languages at SFU.
“We were in college together and I would listen to a lot of music with him,” said Beiswenger. “It was nice having these memories pop up when he spoke about them in his poetry.”
Ussia was interviewed on Fox 8 TV about his new book prior to the reading last Friday.
Kennedy Barbin, a junior Public Health major, loved the event.
“It was not like your average poetry reading, with fingers snapping at the end of every poem,” said Barbin. “Ussia kept pulling my interests more and more into the poetry.”
Ussia shared advice for students during a question-and-answer session at the end of the reading. This part of the program was moderated by SFU Professor of English Brennan Thomas.
“Of all the things that happened in my life,” said Ussia. “Get into weird things, try stuff, and gain experience.”
