UH Poet Jane Muschenetz Wins National Award

San Diego poet Jane Muschenetz, a mother of two and refugee from Soviet Ukraine, has been awarded first place in the 2025 National Federation of Press Women (NFPW) Professional Communications Contest for her poetry collection, POWER POINT. She received the award on Saturday, September 13, 2025, during the NFPW Conference in Golden, Colorado.

Jane is the author of POWER POINT (Sheila Na Gig, 2024) and All the Bad Girls Wear Russian Accents (Kelsay Books, 2023). An award-winning poet and speaker, Jane has appeared in MIT Technology Review, KPBS Midday Edition, Spoken Word Paris, and elsewhere. Jane earned her MBA from MIT Sloan and her BA in Political Science from University of California, San Diego. Connect with Jane and her work at www.PalmFrondZoo.com.

Jane is a UH resident who arrived in San Diego as a child refugee from Soviet Ukraine and later built a career as an MIT-trained business analyst, draws deeply from her personal journey as both a refugee and mother. Her work weaves data, humor, and heart into poetry that resonates across cultures and disciplines. Her collection POWER POINT also earned her top honors in the Single Poem category for her piece “You are 600% hotter than the Sun.”