Michael Hurley

Michael Hurley serves as a Senior Lecturer in the Department of English within the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, teaching undergraduate courses in rhetoric, creative writing, and literary publishing since at least 2014.

Education:

• MFA in Creative Writing (Poetry) with Graduate Minor in Art History, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (2017)
• BA in Creative Writing (Poetry), English Literature, and Anthropology, University of Pittsburgh (2008)

Creative and Teaching Focus: Hurley is an active poet whose work appears in premier literary journals including The American Poetry Review, The Cincinnati Review, and Bennington Review, with a published chapbook Wooden Boys (Seven Kitchens Press). His pedagogical expertise spans rhetoric instruction, poetry workshops, and literary editing, reflected in his extensive course offerings and editorial leadership at Ninth Letter.

Teaching Recognition:

• 24 consecutive semesters ranked Excellent by students (2014-2024)
• University-level Campus Award and College-level LAS Award for Undergraduate Teaching (2023)
• Multiple Rhetoric Program and Departmental Teaching Awards (2015-2020)
• Graduate Teacher and Finley Teacher Scholar Certificates (2017)

Editorial Leadership: Serves as Assistant Editor and Web Editor for Ninth Letter, with prior roles as Interim Co-Managing Editor (2022-2023) and Assistant Managing Editor, overseeing poetry and nonfiction content since 2014.