Behind the doors of the Writing Center sits a group of tutors who are doing much more than editing.
The Writing Center is open seven days a week and features a staff of 17 peer tutors and one graduate assistant. These employees actually help with all stages of the writing process, not just editing, which is a common misconception.
“I have the sense that a lot of students want to drop off their paper and say will you edit this for me,” said Professor of English Jamie Dessart, who teaches various composition courses and makes it a requirement for students to go the Writing Center. “They don’t edit for you, they help you edit.”
The Writing Center and its employees provide help in various areas of writing, and the employees learn to do so through a thorough training program. According to Jill Sunday, Director of the Writing Center, the course titled, “Teaching Grammar and Writing,” acts as a prerequisite to working at the Writing Center.
On top of that, employees have to meet with Sunday eight times in the fall semester to brush up on their skills and further prepare themselves to be an independent tutor. The meetings in the fall help ensure that the employee will be self-sufficient by Christmas time, which makes the employee available for independent work the second semester.
The Writing Center is all about creating a non-stressful environment for students to improve upon their writing skills.
“There should be a place on campus to have a conversation about writing,” said Sunday. “It should be a nonthreatening place where there are no grades and no judgment.”
Some students are hesitant to go, but realize the benefits after they have attended a tutoring session.
“I was forced to go for class,” said Nate Gearhart, a sophomore criminal justice major. “Going in, I felt as if they would just mark up my paper and give it back, but my tutor actually walked me through ideas and we had a discussion about it.”
This represents the whole mission of the writing center.
“Our goal is to make better writers, not better papers,” said Sunday. “We want students to leave with the tools to be a better writer.”
The goal is not only to make students better writers, but also assist the workers to become well-rounded people. Sunday sees the development in her employees year after year.
“They deal with a variety of personalities and situations so they become better leaders that are strong and friendly,” said Sunday.
While the focus is centered around the work the employees are doing, they also see a personal growth in themselves and their own work as well.
“The Writing Center has helped me use MLA, APA and other formats correctly,” said Addy Knetzer, a junior accounting and finance major and employee of the Writing Center. “Working in the Writing Center has developed my leadership skills.”
The Writing Center is a comfortable place for student to get help with various writing assignments, but its effects go much deeper as they reach the employees as well. While the Writing Center is viewed as a way to quickly proofread a paper, the service they provide for students goes much further than that. With a dedicated staff, the Writing Center proves to be useful resource to all parties involved.