WT to Host Two-Part Distinguished Lecture Series Event Highlighting Professional Spanish Translation

March 1, 2022 Contact: Dr. Andrew Reynolds, 806-651-2466, areynolds@wtamu.edu WT to Host Two-Part Distinguished Lecture Series Event Highlighting Professional Spanish Translation CANYON, Texas – The Distinguished Lecture Series will present Lisa Dillman and Gregary J. Racz for an in-person two-part event, “Spanish Literary Translation in Motion,” on April 4 on the West Texas A&M University campus. The first event will consist of a translation workshop for students and guests. Visitors of this workshop will perform both prose and poetry translation activities. The workshop will begin at 12:30 p.m. in Classroom Center, Room 316. The second event is an evening discussion on literary translation and will begin at 6:30 p.m. in the Sybil B. Harrington Fine Arts Complex Recital Hall. Dillman and Racz will share their focus on English and Spanish translation. “Translation is a complex cultural practice that is much more than just swapping out words in another language,” said Dr. Andrew Reynolds, Director of the Spanish Program at WT. Dillman is currently teaching in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese at Emory University in Atlanta. She was raised in California and studied Spanish at the University of California, San Diego before completing an M.A. in Spanish Literature at Emory and a second M.A. in Literary Translation from Middlesex University in London. A few of her accomplished works include translation of the novel “The Mule,” by Juan Eslava Galán, which was turned into a motion picture starring Clint Eastwood, and in 2016, she won the Best Translated Book Award for “Signs Preceding the End of the World.” Racz is a professor of English, Philosophy and Languages at Long Island University Brooklyn, review editor for Translation Review, and a former president of the American Literary Translations Association (ALTA). His latest work includes translations of Latin American poetry that have appeared in the bilingual volumes of “The Butchers’ Reincarnation” by Chilean Oscar Han. “Because we are a Hispanic-speaking institution, this is something that can be really beneficial for our Hispanic students as well as any student with an interest in language, the arts, and literature,” Dr. Reynolds said. “In the 13 years I have been here, we have never had an event like this at WT. I am so excited to have these translators here on campus.” Other sponsors for the event include the Sybil B. Harrington College of Fine Arts and Humanities, the Department of English, Philosophy and Modern Languages, and the WT Spanish Program. Additional upcoming Distinguished Lecture Series events include “What Happened to Steve?” featuring Steve Burns, the original host of “Blue’s Clues,” at 7 p.m. on April 5. Cowboy poet Red Steagall will present “Values of the Cow Country Told in Story, Verse and Song” at 7 p.m. on April 7 in Legacy Hall. A Zoom option also will be available; register at bit.ly/steagall. The event is a joint presentation of CSAW’s Nall Lecture Series and the Distinguished Lecture Series. The final DLS event, “Anti-Union Workers and Conservative Backlash Politics During the 1937 Sit-Down Strikes” with Dr. Gregory J. Wood, will take place on April 14 in the Blackburn Room of the Cornette Library. A commitment to academic study of language is an important key to the University’s long-range plan, WT 125: From the Panhandle to the World. This plan is fueled by the historic, $125 million One West comprehensive fundraising campaign. About WTAMU’s Distinguished Lecture Series The Distinguished Lecture Series was created to enhance education in the classroom by inviting people of national prominence to speak to WTAMU students and the community about important issues. For information, visit wtamu.edu/about/events/distinguished-lecture-series.html. About West Texas A&M University WT is located in Canyon, Texas, on a 342-acre residential campus. Established in 1910, the University has been part of The Texas A&M University System since 1990. WT, a Hispanic Serving Institution since 2016, boasts an enrollment of about 10,000 and offers 60 undergraduate degree programs, 40 master’s degrees and two doctoral degrees. The University is also home to the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum, the largest history museum in the state and the home of one of the Southwest’s finest art collections. The Buffaloes are a member of the NCAA Division II Lone Star Conference and offers 14 men’s and women’s athletics programs. ###