Rachel Ephraim (she/her) teaches Fiction, Memoir, and Social Justice at Bard Early College in Hudson, NY. She is also a faculty member at The Center for Writing and Ethics, an initiative of Bard College’s Written Arts Program, as well as a volunteer screener at Ploughshares. Previously, she taught for Writopia Lab, a non-profit that fosters joy, literacy, and critical thinking in children and teens from all backgrounds through creative writing. She received her M.F.A. in Fiction from Columbia University, at which time she worked as a reader in the Fiction Department of The New Yorker. Her fiction has been published in Electric Literature, The Washington Square Review, Litro, and The Apple Valley Review, among others. She is the author of the short story collection I Couldn’t Help Myself and is currently at work on a novel. Rachel has been awarded fellowships from Vermont Studio Center, La Muse, Milkwood International, and Gowry Art Institute and is represented by Ellen Levine and Audrey Crooks at Trident Media Group. Following the passage of the law that criminalizes homosexuality in Uganda, Rachel is involved in efforts to support the LGBTQ community whose lives are now in danger. If you'd like to learn more about this grassroots project or how to help, please be in touch.