Clarisse Baleja Saïdi

Clarisse Baleja Saïdi is a writer, editor and teaching artist. Born and raised in Côte d’Ivoire, she is of Rwandan and Congolese (DRC) descent and holds Ugandan and Canadian nationalities. Baleja is a graduate of the University of Toronto SCS Creative Writing Program. She earned a BA in English Language and Literature from Carleton University and an MFA from the University of Michigan’s Helen Zell Writers’ Program. Baleja has received grant and fellowship support from Hedgebrook, MacDowell, Yaddo, the Canada Council for the Arts, Toronto Arts Council, Ontario Arts Council, the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown, and more. Find her here: linktr.ee/ClarisseBaleja

Clarisse was a DD mentee from the 2011 short form program.