Ohio Wesleyan Professor David M. Caplan, Ph.D., Selected To Review Fulbright Scholarship Applications In American Literature
David M. Caplan, Ph.D.
DELAWARE, Ohio – Ohio Wesleyan University Professor of English David M. Caplan, Ph.D., a two-time Fulbright Lecturer, has been selected to review applications for Fulbright Scholarships in American literature.
Ohio Wesleyan’s Benjamin T. Spencer Professor of Literature and associate director of creative writing, Caplan will serve as a member of the Fulbright Scholar Discipline Peer Review Committee. The Fulbright Program is active in more than 155 countries, and Caplan’s committee will evaluate scholarship applications submitted worldwide.
According to the Council for International Exchange of Scholars: “The work of the Peer Review Committees is vital to the success of the Fulbright Scholar Program. It is because of the great care that peer reviewers take while reviewing applications that we can ensure a fair selection of Fulbright Scholar Program grantees.”
Caplan joined the Ohio Wesleyan Department of English in 2000, and specializes in 20th– and 21st-century American literature. His scholarly interests include verse form and contemporary poetry.
He earned his Fulbright Scholarships in 2004 and 2012, with both awards enabling him to teach and conduct research in American literature at the University of Liège in Belgium.
Caplan has written four books: “Questions of Possibility: Contemporary Poetry and Poetic Form” (2004); “Poetic Form: An Introduction” (2006), “In the World He Created According to His Will” (2010); and “Rhyme’s Challenge: Poetry, Hip Hop, and Contemporary Rhyming Culture” (2014).
In “Rhyme’s Challenge,” published in February, Caplan argues that hip-hop artists are the most daring, inventive, and sophisticated contemporary rhymers. In an Aug. 1 book review published by TheRumpus.net, Charlotte Pence states: “Caplan, a rigorous scholar who can explain a line’s brilliance without succumbing to theory or jargon, details many of hip hop’s unique rhyming practices in this collection of essays. … Ultimately, this is a hopeful book, one that sees flux as a positive and that sees analysis as an aid to enjoying art in all its facets and embodiments, from the commercial to the high brow.”
Read the full review at therumpus.net/2014/08/rhymes-challenge-hip-hop-poetry-and-contemporary-rhyming-culture-by-david-caplan.
Caplan earned his Bachelor of Arts from Hobart College, Master of Fine Arts from the University of Florida, and additional Master’s and Doctoral degrees from the University of Virginia.
Read more about him and Ohio Wesleyan’s Department of English at https://www.owu.edu/academics/departments-programs/department-of-english/.
Founded in 1842, Ohio Wesleyan University is one of the nation’s premier liberal arts universities. Located in Delaware, Ohio, the private, coed university offers more than 90 undergraduate majors, minors, and concentrations, and competes in 23 NCAA Division III varsity sports. Ohio Wesleyan combines a challenging, internationally focused curriculum with off-campus learning and leadership opportunities to connect classroom theory with real-world practice. OWU’s 1,850 students represent 42 states and 37 countries. Ohio Wesleyan is featured in the book “Colleges That Change Lives,” listed on the 2013 President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll with Distinction, and included in the U.S. News & World Report and Princeton Review “best colleges” lists. Learn more at www.owu.edu.