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For the second consecutive year, a Holy Cross alumnus has
joined the exclusive ranks of recipients of a $500,000 award
from the John D. and Catherine
T. MacArthur Foundation, in recognition of their work
and contribution to society.
Novelist Edward P. Jones ’72, of Washington, D.C.,
recently was named one of 23 new MacArthur fellows. James
J. Collins ’87, professor of biomedical engineering
at Boston University, and Osvaldo Golijov, associate professor
of music at Holy Cross, were named MacArthur fellows last
year.
Jones is the author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel,
The Known World and, also, of an acclaimed collection of
short stories, Lost in the City. In making the announcement,
the foundation stated: “Edward P. Jones is a fiction
writer who renders in story a mysterious incongruity of the
human experience–how faith, dignity, and love often
survive, and sometimes thrive, in the face of systemic adversity. … [He]
works painstakingly to compose artful, morally complicated
fiction that challenges, provokes, and enriches.”
A sprawling saga, The Known World examines the antebellum
world of free blacks who owned black slaves. Jones’ short
story collection deals with African American working class
and underclass experiences in mid-20th century, inner-city
Washington, D.C. His fiction has also appeared in such publications
as Essence, Ploughshares, Callaloo, and The New Yorker. Jones
received a master of fine arts degree from the University
of Virginia.
As the foundation states, MacArthur fellows are “selected
for their originality, creativity, and the potential to do
more in the future. Candidates are nominated, evaluated,
and selected through a rigorous and confidential process.
No one may apply for the awards, nor are any interviews conducted.” There
are no restrictions on how recipients use the funds, which
will be distributed over the next five years.
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