Is UCSD planning to fold Clarion into its MFA program in creative writing?
This is a question that popped up in the blogosphere a while ago and has spread like wildfire, to the point where we feel we should address it here. First we’d like to point out that Clarion is now organized as a 501(c)(3) foundation, which gives us equal negotiating status with our host institution — and specifically with UCSD — something we didn’t have in the past. UCSD may be bigger than we are, but we are equal partners under the law and, more importantly, Clarion is the partner that brings UCSD into contact with the sf/f writer community as well as the sf/f fan community. In other words, UCSD is getting as much from Clarion as Clarion is getting from UCSD. We wouldn’t dream of allowing Clarion to be subsumed by an MFA program. And UCSD wouldn’t want to do anything that jeopardizes our relationship with them. To quote Jim Shea, UCSD’s Director of Constitutent Relations, “If the Clarion Foundation decides to move the Workshop from UCSD at some future date, what will we have? Nothi
