Faculty Profile: Connie Veenendaal
At 100 years old, Cornelia “Connie” Veenendaal has lived a life full of experiences that have shaped her as a poet, teacher, and lifelong learner. In this Q&A, Veenendaal shares her journey from her early days in Springfield, MA, to becoming one of the founding faculty members at UMass Boston.
Q: Can you tell us about your early life and education?
I grew up in Springfield and went on to attend UMass Amherst, where I majored in English. Originally, I wanted to be an artist, but over time I found my way as a teacher and writer.
Q: What was it like teaching during those early years at UMass Boston?
The university was still growing, and we expanded into some of the surrounding buildings. The library was housed in an old arsenal next to the Park Square building. It was also the era of the Vietnam War, the Civil Rights Movement, and the women’s movement, so we were often involved in protests or other events. I have four record books filled with the names of students I taught over the years, but it’s hard to remember them all!
Q: How did you develop your interest in poetry?
I wrote occasionally during my school years when I wanted to express an idea or feeling, but I didn’t have the ambition to be a poet back then. I thought I wanted to be an artist. I learned a lot from reading sonnets, odes, and blank verse in my English classes. I even heard Robert Frost read his poetry while I was at Amherst— that was inspiring. It wasn’t until my early years at UMass Boston that I started meeting working poets. After my first reading, I was invited to join a small group of Boston poets in a workshop. That experience was a revelation, and I learned a lot. Eventually, our group founded the Alice James Poetry Cooperative and published our own books.
Q: What have you been up to since retiring from UMass Boston?
I retired in 1990 and soon after that went to China with a group of editors and writers as part of a cultural exchange. I also took a photography course at the New England School of Photography. Later, I returned to UMass Boston as a student in the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI), where I took many wonderful courses—everything from Mozart to Grimm’s Fairy Tales to courses on Iraq and the Israel–Palestine conflict. I was also a longtime member of a memoir-writing group. I continued to write poetry too. My fourth collection, An Argument of Roots, was published in 2014, and I’m currently working on a new manuscript titled Terrestrial. I hope to publish it soon.
Q: Do you have any final thoughts on your long career as a teacher and poet?
I realize now how fortunate I’ve been. I had 30 years of the most rewarding work I could have found at UMass Boston. And poetry has always been a part of my life—it has given me a way to express myself and connect with others. I’m proud of what I’ve accomplished and look forward to what’s next.