Donald Justice (born in Miami, Florida, August 12, 1925 - died in Iowa City, Iowa, August 6, 2004) was an American poet and teacher of writing. He graduated from the University of Miami and went on to teach for many years at Iowa Writers' Workshop, the nation's first graduate program in creative writing. Some of his students there included Mark Strand, Charles Wright, and Jorie Graham. He also taught at Syracuse University, the University of California at Irvine, Princeton University, the University of Virginia, and the University of Florida in Gainesville. “Miami” redirects here. ... is the 224th day of the year (225th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1925 (MCMXXV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Iowa City is a city in Johnson County, Iowa, USA. It is the principal city of the Iowa City, Iowa Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of both Johnson and Washington counties. ... is the 218th day of the year (219th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The poor poet A poet is a person who writes poetry. ... This article is about the university in Coral Gables, Florida. ... The Program in Creative Writing, more commonly known as the Iowa Writers Workshop, at the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa is a prestigious college and graduate-level creative writing program in the United States. ... Mark Strand (born April 11, 1934) is an American poet, born in Canada. ... Charles Wright may be: Charles Wright (cricketer) (1863-1936), Nottinghamshire and England cricketer Charles Wright (poet) (born 1935) Charles Wright (wrestler) (born 1961), professional wrestler See also: Charles Wright (born 1940), leader of Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band This is a disambiguation page—a list of articles... Jorie Pepper Graham-Galvin (born May 9, 1950), American poet and the editor of numerous volumes of poetry. ... Syracuse University (SU) is a private nonsectarian research university located in Syracuse, New York. ... Berkeley Davis Irvine Los Angeles Merced San Diego Santa Barbara Santa Cruz UC Office of the President in Oakland The University of California (UC) is a public university system in the state of California. ... Princeton University is a private coeducational research university located in Princeton, New Jersey. ... The University of Virginia (also called U.Va. ... The University of Florida (commonly referred to as Florida, UFL, or UF) is a public land-grant, space-grant, research university located in Gainesville, Florida. ... Gainesville is the name of several places in the United States of America: Gainesville, Alabama Gainesville, Florida - the largest Gainesville in the United States. ...

Justice was the author of ten books of poetry. The first book, The Summer Anniversaries, was the winner of the Lamont Poetry Prize given by the Academy of American Poets in 1961; Selected Poems won the Pulitzer Prize in 1980. He was awarded the Bollingen Prize in Poetry in 1991, and the Lannan Literary Award in 1996. This article is about the art form. ... The James Laughlin Award is given annually by the Academy of American Poets to recognize a poets second published book. ... The Academy of American Poets is the largest organization in the United States dedicated to the art of poetry. ... The Pulitzer Prize is an American award regarded as the highest national honor in print journalism, literary achievements, and musical composition. ...

His honors also included grants from the Guggenheim Foundation, the Rockefeller Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Arts. He was a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters, and a Chancellor of the Academy of American Poets from 1997 to 2003. His Collected Poems was nominated for the National Book Award in 2004. Justice was also a National Book Award Finalist in 1961, 1974, and 1995. Guggenheim Fellowships are awarded annually by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the arts. ... The Rockefeller Foundation (RF) is a prominent philanthropic organization based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. ... The National Endowment for the Arts is a United States federally funded program that offers support and funding for projects that exhibit artistic excellence. ... American Academy of Arts and Letters is an organization whose goal is to foster, assist, and sustain an interest in American literature, music, and art. ... The Academy of American Poets is the largest organization in the United States dedicated to the art of poetry. ... The National Book Awards is one of the most preeminent literary prizes in the United States. ...

Of Justice as teacher, his student and later colleague Marvin Bell said in a eulogy, “As a teacher, Don chose always to be on the side of the poem, defending it from half-baked attacks by students anxious to defend their own turf. While he had firm preferences in private, as a teacher Don defended all turfs. He had little use for poetic theory.” Marvin Bell (1937 - ) is an American poet who famously wrote books of poems called The Book of the Dead Man and Ardor: The Book of the Dead Man, Vol. ...

Of his accomplishments as a poet, former student, poet and critic Tad Richards has noted, in an essay for the Greenwood Encyclopedia of American Poets and Poetry, "Donald Justice is likely to be remembered as a poet who gave his age a quiet but compelling insight into loss and distance, and who set a standard for craftsmanship, attention to detail, and subtleties of rhythm."

Major works include these volumes of poetry:

• The Summer Anniversaries, 1960
• Night Light, 1967
• Departures, 1973
• Selected Poems, 1979
• The Sunset Maker, 1987
• A Donald Justice Reader, 1991
• New and Selected Poems, 1995
• Collected Poems, 2004

Essay and interview collections:

• Oblivion: On Writers and Writing, 1998
• Platonic Scripts, 1984

Edited volumes:

• Collected Poems of Henri Coulette (with Robert Mezey), 1990 (University of Arkansas Press)
• Contemporary French Poetry (with Alexander Aspel), 1965
• The Collected Poems of Weldon Kees, 1960

Libretti: Henri Coulette (1927 - 1988) was an American poet. ... Robert Mezey (b. ... Harry Weldon Kees (February 24, 1914- presumed dead July 18, 1955) was an American poet, critic, novelist and short story writer. ...

• The Young God - A Vaudeville (opera by Edward Miller), 1969
• The Death of Lincoln: an opera by Edwin London on an original libretto by Donald Justice, 1988

Reference: "A Note on Donald Justice" (biographical sketch).

External links

• Donald Justice profile, NNDB.
• Donald Justice interview.
• A biography and critical appreciation.