Our Mission

Our goal as a Writing Center is to help students become better writers by modifying the way they think about writing.

Three central concepts guide all of the services we provide here in the writing center:

• Writing as Inquiry: Many people think of writing as an act of transcription; you have an idea in your mind and you simply transcribe it on paper. Research and the experience of real writers, however, show that the act of writing is an act of learning, a process of discovering new ways to look at our worlds and our places in them. When writing is an act of inquiry—when it starts with dissonance and questions, rather than pre-fashioned answers—writing becomes a process of learning. Hence, a central goal of the Center is to help you think about and experience writing as a mode of inquiry and discovery.
• Writing as Process: In the Center, we aim to stress the process of writing—inventing and developing ideas, planning, drafting, revising, and editing. Our instructors will help you develop more awareness of your writing process, offering you a variety of strategies for improving that process at every level.
• Writing as Collaboration: Writing is a social act, and whether you’re writing in an academic community, business community, or creative community, all writing is (in one way or another) collaborative. Learning to write with others, to respond to others’ writing, and to write for specific audiences are vital goals of the service we provide. It is our hope that the Writing Center will be a place where sharing ideas, generating and working through conflict, and engaging in a spirit of collaboration prevail.