Eastern Michigan University's First-Year Writing Program,
which uses innovative strategies to help students learn
to write well, has won a national "Writing Program Certificate
of Excellence for 2005-06," from the Conference on College
Composition and Communication (CCCC).
This is the first time EMU has won the award, which will
be presented at the CCCC conference in Chicago, March 24. EMU's
program will be one of only three in the country to be
honored, along with Duke and Marquette universities.
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Adler-Kassner |
The Conference on College Composition and Communication,
with 8,000 members worldwide, supports and promotes the
teaching and study of college composition and communication.
"It is very exciting to be honored for our efforts," said
Linda Adler-Kassner, associate professor of English language
and literature, and program director. "Our program
helps students develop writing and reading strategies that
they can use to be successful, not only in their university
courses, but also in their careers."
The EMU program was cited by judges for "imaginatively
addressing the needs and opportunities of its students,
instructors and locale; for offering exemplary ongoing
professional development for faculty; and for centering
the program on real audiences and public venues where students
can publish and display their work."
The program, which is integrated into three English courses,
reaches more than 2,500 students a year, said Adler-Kassner.
"We take an innovative approach to writing. Each course
helps students identify what they know; helps them to develop
new writing and reading strategies that build on that knowledge;
and teaches them how to transfer those strategies to writing
situations inside and outside of school," she said. "For
example, the first course deals with genres; the second
helps develop research writing strategies; and the third
looks at how writing can effect change in a changing world."
The program also sponsors a yearly "Celebration of Student
Writing" event that showcases student writing in a variety
of forms. This year's event is April 12, 4-5:30 p.m., in
EMU's McKenny Union Ballroom.
"Our students develop projects based on their research.
It's a multimedia extravaganza and the projects are amazing," said
Adler-Kassner. "Projects have ranged from producing radio
documentaries and painting portraits accompanied by narratives,
to developing class magazines and scrapbooks."
