BJ Ward’s most recent book of poetry, Gravedigger’s Birthday, was a finalist for the Paterson Poetry Prize. His two earlier volumes are 17 Love Poems with No Despair and Landing in New Jersey with Soft Hands. All three volumes are published by North Atlantic Books and distributed by Random House.

His poetry has been featured on National Public Radio’s "The Writer’s Almanac," New Jersey Network’s "State of the Arts," and the web site Poetry Daily, as well as in publications such as Poetry, TriQuarterly, The Literary Review, Painted Bride Quarterly, Puerto Del Sol, Mid-American Review, The Sun, and dozens of other journals. His essays have appeared in The New York Times, The Worcester Review, and Teaching Artist Journal, as well as on the American Library Association’s main library advocacy web site (www.ilovelibraries.org) during National Library Week.

He is the recipient of a Pushcart Prize for Poetry and fellowships from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, and the Artists/Teachers Institute. He earned the M.A. at Syracuse University where he served as University Distinguished Fellow.

As a teacher, he has received the Governor’s Award in Arts Education from the State of New Jersey and has been designated Distinguished Teaching Artist by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts. Mr. Ward was also named Teaching Artist of the Year by Playwrights’ Theatre of New Jersey for his work in the New Jersey Writers Project. For three years he served as the Poetry Instructor at the New Jersey Governor’s School for the Arts. He has also taught at The Controlled Burn Seminar for Younger Writers and at the Frost Place Seminar for Young Poets. He is the recipient of the NISOD Excellence Award at Warren County Community College, where he works throughout the year as an Associate Professor in the Creative Writing program.