Dr. Jamie Walker is a poet,
published author, and freelance journalist for countless Black newspapers
and media outlets. Originally from
Oakland, California,
Walker graduated magna cum laude
from San Francisco State University, where she
studied Theater and Black Studies. Walker starred in several plays
throughout California, as a respected and highly praised leading actress. In
1998, she received a full-ride to study in the Masters Program in English at
Howard University. In 2000, she received her Masters Degree (with Distinction) in African
American and Caribbean Literature from Howard. She has participated in the
Preparing Future Faculty program, and is a member of The Golden Key National
Honor Society, as well as The National Association of Black Journalists.
Jamie’s first book, 101 Ways Black Women
Can Learn to Love Themselves, was written while she was still a student
in the Masters program at Howard University. It received stunning reviews from Black Issues Book Review, Upscale,
and Heart and Soul magazine.
In the Fall of 2001, Walker received a
distinguished scholarship award from poet
Sonia Sanchez on behalf of
The Elizabeth Howard and Thorton H. Trust Fund. That same year, poet
Ethelbert Miller
recommended Walker for a Lannan Poetry Fellowship at The Shakespeare Library
in Washington, D.C. Walker received her Ph.D. in
African American and Caribbean Literature from Howard
University in May 2005.
Praised for her “superior
skill in research,” Walker was selected (out of thirty students across the
United States) by Camille O. Cosby and Renee Poussaint to join the first
class of students in The National Visionary Heritage Fellowship Program. Her
work produced during her time with the NVLP is now archived at The
Smithsonian, and featured in a book (edited by Camille Cosby and Renee
Poussaint) called A Wealth of Wisdom: Legendary African American Elders
Speak (Atria Books 2004). Her work is also featured in a new book edited
by Tommie Lindsey called It Doesn’t Take a Genius: Five Truths to Inspire
Success in Every Student (McGraw-Hill 2005).
Featured in numerous
publications, Walker is the former book buyer for the Howard University
Bookstore, and has worked at Moorland-Spingarn Research Center in
Washington, D.C. Walker’s second book of poetry is entitled Signifyin’
Me: New and Selected Poems (Xlibris 2005). Currently, Walker teaches
Freshman English at Howard University and works in the Marketing and Editorial Department at the Howard
University Press. She is also editing a critical anthology on her mentor,
poet Sonia Sanchez, called Sonia On My Mind. Jamie can be reached
through her website
www.jamiewalker.org or via email at
jamiedwalker@yahoo.com.