Richard Freis has lived in Mississippi for almost forty years and knows the territory of the novel well.  His poetry has appeared in Poetry, The Southern Review, Drastic Measures and other magazines and anthologies.  He has published widely, both locally and nationally, as a literary and performing and visual arts journalist, scholar and spiritual director.

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At Millsaps College in Jackson, Mississippi Richard Freis has been a professor of classical studies, director of the innovative Heritage Program, designer of the Leadership Seminars in the Humanities, and was one of the founders and the first president of the Mississippi International Ballet Competition.

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His libretto for a cantata by Alva Henderson, From Greater Light, based on the story of Job, had its world premiere in 2008 in Los Angeles with the Pacific Symphony. His pioneering work in developmental and integral frameworks has informed his work as a personal and organization consultant.  He holds a BA from St. John’s College in Annapolis, Maryland; an MA and PhD from the University of California, Berkeley, and a Master of Theological Studies from Spring Hill College.