Staff
Swati Anwesha
Editor-in-Chief
Swati is an international student from India pursuing her Ph.D. in Literature from the University of Texas at Dallas. Her interest lies in South Asian American Diaspora studies, and she wishes to specialize in Translation Studies. When not working on her dissertation, she contributes to the literary community in any way she can. She is the Editor-in-Chief at Reunion: The Dallas Review. Swati is also an instructor of Rhetoric and World Literature at UTD.
Thien-Anh Nguyen
Assistant Editor
Thien-Anh Nguyen graduated from the University of Texas of Dallas in December 2024 with their bachelor of arts in literature, a minor in political science, and a credential for legal writing and research. They have worked on the Reunion staff since 2022 and currently hold the position of Assistant Editor.
John Hanger
Managing Editor
Jennifer Cranfill
Fiction Editor
Jennifer Cranfill is a Ph.D. candidate in literature at the University of Texas at Dallas, where she teaches literature and writing. She’s the former senior editor and fiction editor of the Southwest Review and her short stories have appeared in Southern Humanities Review, Cold Mountain Review, storySouth, Antioch Review, and other publications. She won the 2023-2024 Robert S. Nelson Scholarship in Creative Writing.
Junaid Shah Shabir
Poetry Editor
Junaid Shah Shabir is a PhD candidate in Literature and Creative Writing at The University of Texas at Dallas, where he also teaches Rhetoric 1302. He’s previously taught courses in World Literature and English Composition, bringing global cultural perspectives to the classroom. His scholarly and creative work has appeared in publications including Routledge Taylor & Francis, University of Florida Press, and Asiatic IIUM, among others. A passionate poetry reviewer, Junaid has a soft spot for the elegance of form — especially when crafting formal Ghazals in English.
Paula Nwosu
Drama & Creative Nonfiction Editor
Paula Nwosu (UTD ‘25) majors in Biology with a minor in Creative Writing. After graduation, she plans to attend medical school. She’s worked with Reunion: The Dallas Review as a Fiction Reader and is currently Social Media Manager. For Volume 15, Paula is excited to serve as Chief Editor for Creative Non-Fiction and Drama. Her love for the sciences and arts inspire her to write with the intent to inspire, educate, and reform. Paula’s debut piece, Peter is Dead, is published with Half and One magazine. Her short story collection, The Story House, is available on Amazon.
Clara Burghelea
Translation Editor
Clara Burghelea published two poetry collections: The Flavor of The Other (Dos Madres Press 2020) and Praise the Unburied (Chaffinch Press 2021). Her poems and translations appeared in Gulf Coast, Delos, The Los Angeles Review and elsewhere. She is Review Editor of Ezra, An Online Journal of Translation and a PhD candidate in Literature at University of Texas at Dallas.
Emily Santos
Fiction Reader
Hannah Colvin
Fiction Reader
Hannah Colvin is pursuing a graduate degree in Literature, with a goal of working in the publishing industry. Her academic interests are the representations of race and gender in 20th century literature; she also dabbles in the writing and reading of creative nonfiction. When not reading or writing, she likely can be found in her kitchen, baking and listening to true crime podcast
Amanda Simonson
Fiction Reader
Amanda Simonson (she/her) is currently a sophomore studying literature and business administration at The University of Texas at Dallas. She has a passion for reading, literature, and learning and aspires to work as an editor in the publishing industry after graduation. This is Amanda’s first year working on Reunion, and she is eager to help artists and authors in the community accomplish their goals.
Raluca Simion
Fiction Reader
Raluca is a first year PhD student in Literature, passionate about fiction in general, and worldwide literature in translation, in particular. Previously, Raluca worked in the legal field, but decided to follow her long-life passion, books. She loves traveling and getting in touch with new cultures and languages. Her favorite novelists are Soseki, Balzac and Goethe. Her interests are Asian-American literature and contemporary Romanian literature.
Olivia Potter
Drama & Creative Nonfiction Reader
Hi, I’m Olivia Potter I am a senior majoring in English literature. I plan to work in corporate communications after I graduate. I enjoy combining the work I’ve done and learned as a literature major with the courses I’ve taken in business and marketing. In my free time, I enjoy watching my favorite shows and spending time with friends and family, and I love traveling. I hope to get a job where I can travel often both for work and vacation. A dream job would be to teach English abroad.
Lindy Sachse
Drama & Creative Nonfiction Reader
Nathan Klayman
Poetry Reader
Born in Austin, raised in Dallas, Nathan Klayman is currently pursuing his Master of Literature at the University of Texas at Dallas. An unapologetic fan of horror fiction, science fiction and twentieth century poets ranging from T.S. Eliot and Philip Larkin to Gil Scott-Heron and Allan Ginsberg, he spends his free time writing material for his second anthology of weird short fiction under the watchful eye of his office cats.
Simrah Syed
Poetry Reader
Simrah Syed is a visionary artist of various media, including digital art and short stories. Her work revolves around themes of religion, belonging, and mental wellness. She utilizes digital tools to explore the nature of stories and storytelling by mixing media in new and innovative ways.
Kelty Barrett
Poetry Reader
Rebecca Han
Translation Reader
Jacqueline Chou
Translation Reader
Naksh Jajoo
Web Developer
Naksh Jajoo is currently pursuing his Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science. He is currently working with Reunion: The Dallas Review as a web developer and looks after the maintenance of this website. In his free time, he likes watching and playing squash, cricket and soccer.