Students, faculty and university alumni to participate in the readings
By Toby Lemon
n honor of former faculty member, Harry Humes, KU will be hosting a poetry reading at 6 p.m. on Nov. 5 in MSU room 223. Doors will open at 5 p.m. prior to the program’s start. The KU English department sponsored event is free and open to the public.
Former students of Humes, alumni and faculty will read some of Humes’s poetry, recognizing him as both a member of the KU community and an accomplished poet.
Humes was not only a valued member of the KU faculty, but also an American poet, short-story writer and editor. He passed away last year on April 4, 2025 at the age of 89. To recognize the work that Humes did for the university and his work as a writer, Dr. Robert Fillman and Dr. Andrew Vogel, along with other members of the campus community, have organized this event as a tribute to the former professor.
When asked what the department’s mission is with the reading and event, Dr. Fillman said, “to celebrate him as a professor, as a poet, as a member of this community and to really highlight his legacy as both a writer and a teacher and friend and colleague.”
The impact that Humes has had during and after his tenure at KU continues to influence the university and its community, as shown through the efforts to remember him and continue his legacy.
The selection of Humes’ poems being read the night of the event, as the coordinator commented, “(the event) will feature people who he was a big influence on, reading his poems and poems that influenced them…the whole event is organized for the larger community to celebrate that impact that he left.”
These poems can be found in the recently released volume Going Across the Water: New and Selected Poems of Harry Humes.
Alongside the event’s poetry reading, there will be light refreshments and artifacts from Humes’ life. There will also be copies of Going Across the Water: New and Selected Poems of Harry Humes available for purchase at the event to commemorate the publication.
More information about the event can be found on the Kutztown University English Department Instagram page.
Photo Credit: Dr. Fillman