Parneshia Jones was appointed director of Northwestern University Press. She will be only the second Black woman to lead a university press in the United States.
Northwestern University Press publishes works in philosophy, the performing arts, fiction, poetry, Black studies, critical ethnic studies, Slavic studies, literary criticism, literature in translation and Chicago regional books. The Press’s award-winning imprint, TriQuarterly Books, is devoted primarily to contemporary American fiction and poetry.
An Evanston native and a published poet, Jones joined the Northwestern University Press in 2003 as marketing assistant and served in several progressively more responsible positions. Most recently, she served as editorial director for trade and engagement.
Jones teaches in the master of fine arts writing program at Vermont College of Fine Arts. She is a graduate of Chicago State University, where she majored in English and creative writing. Jomes has won the Gwendolyn Brooks Poetry Award, the Margaret Walker Short Story Award, and the Aquarius Press Legacy Award