Warren Wilson College Remembers Ellen Bryant Voigt, Founder of the MFA Program for Writers

Warren Wilson College mourns the passing of Ellen Bryant Voigt, the acclaimed poet, educator, and founder of the MFA Program for Writers, who died on October 23, 2025, in Vermont. A visionary in arts education, Voigt pioneered the low-residency model of graduate study that transformed how creative writing is taught and opened new pathways for generations of writers balancing artistic ambition with the demands of work, family, and community life.

Voigt first conceived of the low-residency MFA in the 1970s at Goddard College before bringing the program to Warren Wilson in 1981. Her vision was both radical and inclusive: a space where writers from diverse backgrounds- first-generation students, working parents, veterans, and artists from historically marginalized communities- could pursue the highest levels of craft and scholarship. Under her leadership, the MFA Program for Writers became the model for similar programs across the country and remains one of the most respected writing programs in the world.

Over her five-decade career, Voigt published numerous poetry and essay collections, including Kyrie, Messenger: New and Selected Poems, and The Art of Syntax. Her honors include fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts, the Poets’ Prize, and, in 2015, a MacArthur “Genius” Fellowship recognizing her profound influence as a poet and mentor. From 1981 until her retirement in 2018, she served on the Warren Wilson faculty, guiding generations of writers and shaping a community grounded in creativity, rigor, and mutual respect.

As the MFA Program for Writers approaches its 50th anniversary in 2026, Warren Wilson College celebrates Voigt’s enduring legacy- a legacy that continues to live in the work of thousands of writers whose lives she touched. A faculty reading honoring her life and work will take place during the program’s Winter 2026 Residency, with additional tributes planned at the AWP Conference in Baltimore next spring.

The full remembrance letter from MFA Program Director Dr. Rita Banerjee can be read here.