Marvin Schwartz​​ is a Little Rock, Arkansas-based writer who has worked as a journalist, speech writer, ghost writer, literature instructor, grants writer, and director of state nonprofit organizations. He has a MFA degree in Poetry from the University of Arka​nsas and a MA in Creative Writing from Hollins University. He has published eight books of Arkansas history and two volumes of poetry, and his work has received numerous state awards and national recognition. He is a national champion masters swimmer and a member of the Arkansas Swimming Hall of Fame.

Notable Accomplishments
Program Creation, Fundraising, and Development

• Developed a national coalition to support agricultural enterprise by new immigrants. Heifer International’s "Immigrant Farmer Program," received $1 million grant from U. S. Department of Agriculture.
• Created an international program linking Rotary Clubs in Arkansas and Romania to improve nutrition for hospitalized children. Rotary International supported the program, "Farmers Feed The Children," with a 3H grant of $300,000. 
• Secured Kellogg Foundation grant of $600,000 as co-creator of Youth Enterprise in Agriculture Program, a multi-state partnership for minority rural youth career and leadership development. Increased funding for land retention and sustainable agricultural enterprises for Arkansas Land and Farm Development Corporation.
• Coordinated two Ira Sanders Distinguished Lectures for the Central Arkansas Library System.
• Designed an exhibit on Arkansas music history for the Arkansas State University Museum at Jonesboro.

Coalition Building

• Launched “Community Health Partnership” and engaged Arkansas health institutions in a school-based program for teen pregnancy reduction.
• Wrote, produced, and directed video documentary, "A Place We Called Our Own,” a history of black schools in Columbia County, Arkansas. Integrated the video into a broad-scale community development strategy.  
• Developed the final draft of New Futures for Little Rock Youth, earning a $10 million youth services grant award to the City of Little Rock by the Annie B. Casey Foundation. 

Planning

• Established the Eastern Arkansas Enterprise Community (EAEC) through successful application to U. S. Department of Agriculture. 
• Wrote comprehensive plan for University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff in fulfillment of EAEC benchmark in agriculture.
• Created proposals for the Arkansas Martin Luther King Jr. Commission to establish statewide programs in violence reduction and youth community service. One proposal, "Common Ground," was approved by the Arkansas General Assembly as a new funding mechanism for community development initiatives. 

CONSULTING CLIENTS 

• Arkansas ACLU
• Arkansas Department of Health 
• Arkansas Environmental Federation    
• Arkansans for Drug Free Youth
• Arkansas Martin Luther King Jr. Commission
• Arkansas Medical Dental & Pharmacists Association
• Arkansas State University
• East Arkansas Enterprise Community
• Fargo Agricultural Museum
• Foundation for the Mid South

• Jobs for Arkansas' Future
• Knowing Our Past Foundation 
• La Casa
• Lions World Services for the Blind
• New Futures for Little Rock Youth
• Rotary International                
• Southern Rural Development Initiative        
• St. Francis County Workforce Alliance   
• St. Francis County Community Development Corporation  
• University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
• University of Central Arkansas        
• Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation

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​Marvin speaking to the Trumann, AR Rotary Club to raise public support for Hope for Arkansas, a state lottery initiative that won voter approval to provide educational scholarships. 


Professional Experience
NATIONAL EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR: HIPPY USA
CAMPAIGN MANAGER: Hope For Arkansas (state lottery initiative)
VICE PRESIDENT OF COMMUNITY AFFAIRS: Planned Parenthood of Arkansas and Eastern Oklahoma Inc., Little Rock, Arkansas
DIRECTOR OF GRANTS: Heifer International, Little Rock, Arkansas 
GRANTS WRITER: Little Rock School District, Little Rock, Arkansas 
DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT AND PLANNING: Arkansas Human Development Corporation, Little Rock, Arkansas 
DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT AND PLANNING: Arkansas Land and Farm Development Corporation, Brinkley, Arkansas 
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR: A+ Arkansas, The Committee for Educational Excellence, Little Rock, Arkansas 
DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATION/PUBLIC RELATIONS: Acxiom Corporation, Conway, Arkansas 
JOURNALIST: Arkansas Democrat, Little Rock, Arkansas 
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INSTRUCTOR OF ENGLISH AND WRITING
Pulaski Technical College, Little Rock, Arkansas        
University of Central Arkansas, Conway, Arkansas 
University of Arkansas at Little Rock, Arkansas         
Miami Dade Junior College, Miami, Florida 
Gulliver Preparatory Academy, Miami, Florida         
Schiller College, Strasbourg, France 
American College of Guatemala, Guatemala City
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EDUCATION
Master of Fine Arts - University of Arkansas
Master of Arts - Hollins University, Roanoke, Virginia                                                                                                      
Bachelor of Arts - Syracuse University

Awards and Recognition

Nonfiction
“Volunteers in Service to America: A History of VISTA in Arkansas
             American Library Association Notable Book     

“We Wanna Boogie: The Rockabilly Roots of Sonny Burgess”
           Worthen Prize, Central Arkansas LibrarySystem
           Arkansiana Award, Arkansas Library Association                 
           Arkansas GEM Book 
           Listed in the Readers’ Map of Arkansas

Community Service
Legacy Award, Corporation for National & Community Service
Tikkun Olam Award, Jewish Federation of Arkansas
Lerner Fellowship, Jewish Foundation for the  Righteous
Progress Award, Arkansas Museums Association

Poetry
Sybil Nash Abrams Award, Poets Roundtable of Arkansas
Christopher McKean Award in Poetry, University of Arkansas
Academy of American Poets Award, Hollins University

Swimming
​8-time national champion in United States Masters Swimming
Member -  Arkansas Swimming Hall of Fame