Flannery O'Connor in Iowa, 1946

After Flannery O'Connor graduated in 1947 from the University of Iowa's Writers' Workshop, she became a major force in American literature. A new fellowship fund in the late writer's name will now help the Workshop aid other writers with similar potential.

The Flannery O'Connor Graduate Fellowship Fund was initiated by a gift commitment to the UI Foundation from the Ralph Schultz Family Foundation of Waterloo, Iowa. The endowed fund will increase the level of assistance available to Writers' Workshop students and affirm the program's commitment to developing promising writers regardless of financial means.

"As the model for creative-writing programs worldwide, the Iowa Writers' Workshop has long been the destination of choice for talented writers who wish to hone their craft," Workshop director Lan Samantha Chang said. "To preserve that distinction, we must provide the kind of financial support that will make it possible for the very best writers in the country to keep coming to Iowa."