MURFREESBORO, NC –  The Hobson Course began this week at Chowan University, honoring the 2017 Hobson prize recipient.  Chowan University is pleased to announce Kevin Wilson as the 2017 Mary Frances Hobson Prize for Distinguished Achievement in Arts and Letters.

The Mary Frances Hobson Lecture and Prize for Distinguished Achievement in Arts and Letters is awarded annually by Chowan University to recognize the distinguished achievement of a person in the field of arts and letters.  Preference is given to Southern writers and poets or those authors whose work relates to the South.  The recipient, who receives a medallion and monetary gift, presents a lecture entitled “The Mary Frances Hobson Lecture,” which is open to all area residents, Chowan University students and personnel, and all enthusiasts of the arts and letters in the region.

Classes for the Hobson Course will continue to meet February 27, March 13, March 20, and March 27.  The course will culminate in Kevin Wilson’s visit to campus on Monday April 3, for the Hobson Day of Activities, to include:

2:00pm- Hobson Dialogue (Vaughan Auditorium)

5:00pm- Hobson Receptions (Fine Arts Center)-hosted by Friends of Whitaker Library

6:00pm- Hobson Dinner and Prize Conferral (Chowan Room)

7:30pm- Hobson Lecture (Vaughan Auditorium)

The Hobson Selection Committee noted that “Wilson’s Tunneling to the Center of the Earth and The Family Fang are the books you hope to find each time you enter the bookstore. The kind of books that completely absorb your imagination, taking you to a magical place that exists only on paper.  It is a feeling that reminds you what it was like when you first fell in love with books as a child, when you sought out books that allowed you to escape the life around you.”

For more information please contact Dr. Moore, Provost Chowan University at moored@chowan.edu.