Gladys Cardiff facts for kids

Gladys Cardiff (born in 1942) is a poet and a teacher. She is a member of the Eastern Band Cherokee tribe. She loves to study Native American, African-American, and American literature. She taught at Oakland University from 1999 to 2013.

Early Life and Education

Gladys was born in Browning, Montana. Her father, Henry Owl, was from the Owl clan of the Cherokee tribe. Her grandmother was from the Catawba tribe. Her mother's family came from Ireland and Wales. Gladys is a citizen of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.

She often uses her Cherokee heritage in her poems. She especially likes to mention Cherokee place names. She went to the University of Washington. There, she learned from a famous poet named Theodore Roethke. She also earned a PhD in literature from Western Michigan University.

Published Books and Awards

Gladys Cardiff has written several books of poetry. In 1976, she won the Washington State Governor's Award. This was for her first book of poems, called To Frighten a Storm. She later published another book in 1999. It was titled A Bare Unpainted Table.

She also received awards from the Seattle Arts Commission. These awards were given in 1985 and 1986. In 1988, she shared the Louisa Kerns Award. This award from the University of Washington was for her literary work. Her poems have also been shared by The Poetry Foundation.