Shahenda Helmy

Shahenda Helmy (she/her) is delighted to be joining the Loft team and to continue creating safe spaces for authors and audiences to share their stories. Prior to the Loft, Shahenda was the director of Literary Programs at the PEN/Faulkner Foundation in Washington, DC, where she ran the organization’s Literary Conversations series and national Awards program. She also led the Foundation's pivot to virtual events at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, expanding its reach to new and diverse international audiences. 

While she’s enjoyed reading from a young age, Shahenda developed a deep appreciation for literature through her English degree at the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. A native Arabic speaker, she later went on to obtain a masters degree in education (with a focus on second language learning) from the University of Edinburgh in Scotland in 2016. There, Shahenda discovered an entire new world of arts events as she witnessed the whole city transform into the world’s largest arts festival, the Edinburgh Fringe. She carries the passion for creativity and innovation in the arts that she experienced abroad everywhere she goes. 

There’s nothing Shahenda loves more than making folks feel welcome and celebrated, and she couldn’t be more excited to join the Loft!