The Center for Literary Arts

The Center for Literary Arts (CLA) provides readings, lectures, conversations, and seminars that allow the San Jose community to interact with writers of contemporary literature who have demonstrated exceptional voice and vision. Its mission is to spread the influence of, and interest in, literature throughout the South Bay and to facilitate cross-cultural understanding in the region’s ethnically diverse population through the appreciation of works of literature. Since 1986 the CLA’s Major Authors Series has been the most significant literary series in the region, and has included five winners of the Nobel Prize, sixteen winners of the National Book Award and twenty-nine winners of the Pulitzer Prize.

The Center for Literary Arts is funded entirely by grants and donations from individuals and foundations, and supported, in part, by a Cultural Affairs grant from the City of San Jose and a Community Arts Fund grant from Arts Council Silicon Valley. Additional support is given by Poets & Writers, Inc. through a grant it has received from The James Irvine Foundation.

The Center for Literary Arts is part of the College of Humanities and Arts at San Jose State University.