Rachel Jamison Webster

Rachel Jamison Webster is a Professor of Instruction in the Department of English at Northwestern University’s Weinberg College of Arts & Sciences. She holds an M.F.A. from Warren Wilson College and directs the Creative Writing Program. Her work bridges creative nonfiction, poetry, and cross-genre writing, focusing on themes like ancestry, race, gender, environmental ethics, and literary aesthetics.

• Education: M.F.A. in Creative Writing from Warren Wilson College

Her research explores intersections of ethics and creativity, with a focus on preserving human complexity through writing. Major publications include Benjamin Banneker and Us (2023), a groundbreaking work on family history and racial justice, and Mary is a River (2018), a poetic meditation on love and spirituality.

Her awards include the 2016 Weinberg College Alumni Teaching Award and a Hewlett Fellowship for curriculum innovation. She has designed programs like Words 37 (Chicago’s youth arts initiative) and co-founded the international poetry anthology UniVerse.

Her teaching spans creative writing, literary ethics, and special topics like Writing Ancestry. She emphasizes diversifying creative education and mentoring students, many of whom have published books.