LEWISTON, Maine -- Judith Ortiz Cofer, professor of English and creative writing at the University of Georgia, will discuss "A Casa of My Own" at 4 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 21, in the Edmund S. Muskie Archives at Bates College as part of the college's celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month. The public is invited to attend free of charge.

A native of Puerto Rico, Ortiz Cofer focuses on biculturalism and the creative process. She advocates for the need to disseminate the literature and art of diverse groups within the United States. Ortiz Cofer also explores the U.S. society's assumption that minority artists create sociological text, rather than art.

Among her many distinguished awards are fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Witter Bynner Foundation for Poetry, the Florida and Georgia councils for the arts and the Bread Loaf Writers' Conference. Ortiz Cofer received the 1998 Chris-Janer Award in creative research from the University of Georgia, where she holds the Franklin Professorship in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences. The Rockefeller Foundation awarded her a 1999 residency at the Bellagio, Italy, Conference Center.

This talk is sponsored by the Bates College Multicultural Center. For more information, call 207-786-8376.