Onur Ayaz

Onur Ayaz is a doctoral candidate in the English program at The Graduate Center of the City University of New York and a Lost & Found Archival Research Fellow. His research explores the poetics and pedagogy of New American poet Charles Olson, emphasizing Olson's academic roles at institutions like Clark University, Black Mountain College, and SUNY Buffalo. Ayaz conducts extensive archival research through Lost & Found, visiting repositories including the Maud/Olson Library, New York Public Library, and University of Connecticut's Charles Olson Research Collection.

Education:
Ayaz graduated from Brooklyn College in 2018 (his family's first college graduate) and is currently pursuing a PhD at CUNY Graduate Center.

Research Focus:
His interdisciplinary interests span literary poetics, pedagogical methodologies, archival preservation, and the New American poetry movement. His work uncovers connections between Olson and figures like Paul Metcalf (Herman Melville's great-grandson), highlighting unexplored literary legacies.

Publications:
Ayaz's sole documented publication analyzes African American innovation through historical and entrepreneurial lenses, derived from his Junior Fellowship at the Library of Congress.

Awards:

• Junior Fellow, Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Community Engagement:
He participates in Lost & Found events, including the 2023 and 2025 Fellows Showcases discussing archival poetics projects.