Lisa Siefker Bailey, Teaching Professor of English at IUPUC, recently had three poems published as part of the INverse Poetry Archive. The archive, which was created in 2019 by Indiana Poet Laureate Adrian Matejka in conjunction with the Indiana Humanities and the Indiana Arts Commission, celebrates and preserves the diverse range of Indiana poetry for future generations of Indiana writers and readers.

Siefker Bailey, who teaches both literature and creative writing, also mentors student authors through her sponsorship of IUPUC’s student literary magazine, Talking Leaves. Last year she was inspired by a colleague’s advice to one of her creative writing classes to write about the pandemic. “I was inspired by her advice and continue to write poems that help me wrestle with these uncertain times,” said Siefker Bailey. “Poetry gives me a place to try to sort out feelings and ideas about things that matter deeply to me.”

George Towers, Head of Division of Liberal Arts, praises Siefker Bailey’s willingness to lead her students by example: “Lisa’s excellence is multidimensional. A brilliant classroom teacher and gifted poet, she is also a scholar of teaching and learning who has published her pedagogical insights in prestigious venues.”

Siefker Bailey’s poems can be found on the INverse website at bit.ly/siefker-bailey-inverse, which includes both text and audio versions of the poems which include “One Guide,” “If a Bee Is Working, It Does Not Look like the Apocalypse,” and “Pandemic Generation.”

“When I teach creative writing, I tell students to write authentically, to express what is most true and significant to them. My poems feed my own need to express those truths, truths that aren't even quite real to me until I finish writing each poem,” said Siefker Bailey.

For more information about the INverse Poetry Archive, visit: in.gov/arts/programs-and-services/partners/indiana-poet-laureate/inverse-indianas-poetry-archive.