Meet the Press
Jefferson Holdridge
Director and Editor
Jeff received his doctorate at University College Dublin and is the Press’s Director and Editor. He is also Professor of English at Wake Forest, specializing in Irish literature. He and his wife Wanda Balzano live close to the WFU campus with their young daughter, Sofia.
Alex Muller
Manager
Alex received his BA from Winthrop University and his MA in English from Wake Forest, where he interned with WFU Press and wrote a thesis on “Metaformal Trends in Contemporary American Poetry.” He has previously worked in marketing and local nonprofit organizations, including a/perture cinema. His poetry has appeared in Kakalak and The Rectangle.
Fall 2023 Interns
We’re delighted to have the brains and brawn of our dedicated student interns each semester. Current interns are Anna Gramling, Abby McCabe, Holly Thompson, Alex Silverio, and Carson Smith.
Candide Jones
Advising Assistant Director
Candide managed the press for 24 years, and now works in an advisory capacity. She has a Master’s Degree in English from Wake Forest. She and her husband, Mike, live with two dogs, Shug and Chance, who were trained in the New Leash on Life prison program.
Dillon Johnston
Founding Director
Supported by the administration at Wake Forest, Dillon established the Press in 1975 to bring the best contemporary Irish poetry to North American readers. Dillon retired from Wake Forest in 2003 and later taught at Washington University with his wife (and former WFU Press manager) Guinn Batten. He remained our valuable advising editor and supporter for many years until his passing in 2022. In 2015, WFU Press published a special tribute book to Dillon, titled The Shack: Irish Poets in the Foothills and Mountains of the Blue Ridge.
Advisory Board
Nicholas Allen, University of Georgia—Athens
Guinn Batten, Washington University in St. Louis
Matthew Campbell, University of York
Lucy Collins, University College Dublin
Patricia Coughlan, University College Cork
Mary DeShazer, Wake Forest University
Eric Falci, University of California, Berkeley
Anne Fogarty, University College Dublin
Omaar Hena, Wake Forest University
Declan Kiberd, University of Notre Dame
Brian Ó Conchubhair, University of Notre Dame
Catherine Paul, Clemson University
For fourteen years, our head intern was Bibi, who kept the office happy with lots of love and licks. We remember her most fondly.
We are proud of o
ur “Press Pugs,” Smee and Tootles, who worked alongside former Press Manager Amanda Keith for over 7 years, providing consultation on copy-editing, event planning, and intern support in the form of cuddling.
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