Clarisse Rosaz Shariyf Joins PEN American Center as deputy director of public programs beginning Sept. 21.
Rosaz Shariyf will spearhead PEN’s events calendar for the 2015-2016 season, a busy endeavor which includes more than 50 events in New York. The schedule includes appearances fromTony award-winning performer Alan Cumming, Russian activist-journalist Masha Gessen, and 2015 Pulitzer Prize winner Gregory Pardlo. Rosaz Shariyf more than a decade of experience in curating public arts, educational, and advocacy programs at the New York Public Library’s Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture.
“Clarisse joins PEN at a pivotal time, when a fast-growing audience is tuning in to our uniquely international and distinctly political brand of public programming that spans literature, spoken word, visual arts, music, and the digital sphere,” stated Paul Morris, director of literary programs at PEN. “With a background that blends arts, history, technology, and activism, she is uniquely equipped to help PEN reach new audiences ready to celebrate the power of the written word to provoke, motivate, and inspire.”