Liberal Arts: Humanities & Social Sciences and Creative Writing: Dina Peone ‘13
Since graduating with an Associate degree in Liberal Arts in 2013 Dina Peone has gone on to share her writing talents with others! Currently a lecturer at the University of Chicago, Peone has committed herself to helping others with their writing by designing and teaching unique nonfiction writing courses.
Six years before Peone enrolled at SUNY Ulster, she sustained a severe burn injury that nearly took her life and ability to write. During her time at SUNY Ulster, she recovered some of the confidence she would need to continue pursuing her goals. “SUNY Ulster is where I discovered a structured, community-supported environment in which I could safely begin writing about the fire.” She adds that the College allowed her to “recognize that the fire had not destroyed [her] potential”.
With unwavering spirit, Peone continued striving for excellence. After completing her degree at SUNY Ulster Dina Peone was accepted to her top school, Sarah Lawrence where she attained a Bachelor’s degree, and swears SUNY Ulster played a pivotal role in that success, “SUNY Ulster’s consistent recognition of my efforts is one reason I got accepted by seven out of eight four-year colleges”. Once enrolled at Sarah Lawrence College, Peone’s love for writing continued to flourish and enabled her to be a co-founder of a literary journal titled Cliffhanger, where she served as editor-in-chief.
Dina went on to earn her MFA in nonfiction at the prestigious University of Iowa (’18) and then joined the Iowa faculty as a Visiting Assistant Professor and taught the Nonfiction Writing Program’s first-ever online course.
Today, Peone is teaching her own thesis workshop as well as being a thesis adviser to undergraduate students at U. Chi. Reflecting on her trials and tribulations Peone was ecstatic to share the passion SUNY Ulster had ignited in her and the tremendous gratitude she had for the college. “To my great delight, I am continuously learning what I am capable of. I now fully believe that, at any given time, I am capable of achieving far more than I can imagine.” – Dina Peone
