UWC to fund $3,000 award
The University Writing Center has created an award to recognize innovation and excellence in the teaching of a writing-intensive (W) course. The new University Writing Center Teaching Award is being funded for five years with one $3,000 award given annually.
According to Dr. Valerie Balester, Executive Director of the University Writing Center (UWC), the award acknowledges the work of faculty members teaching W courses.
“The W courses are meant not only to improve students’ writing abilities, but also to encourage them to think critically about topics central to their discipline,” Balester explains. “These courses truly enhance the quality of our students’ undergraduate education.”
“There’s no denying that designing a new course or rethinking an existing one requires careful thought and planning,” Balester continues. “I wish we
could reward all the instructors making that effort, but this award allows us each year to recognize one instructor who approaches the W course with a particular spirit of innovation and a commitment to excellence. In reviewing W course proposals, I’ve been encouraged to find many instructors who see writing not merely as an add-on but as truly integral to the learning process of their students. That’s central to the W course idea.”
The Center for Teaching Excellence will coordinate the award’s selection process; nominations will be reviewed by a committee of faculty members engaged in teaching W courses. Nominations are due to the Center for Teaching Excellence on or before August 5, 2005; the first recipient will be announced in the fall.
Eligible faculty members may be nominated by colleagues, departments, and colleges, or they may nominate themselves. Nomination packets should include:
- a letter of nomination explaining how the instructor is contributing to the development of W courses in the college or department;
- a syllabus demonstrating the integration of writing into the course;
- a brief statement by the nominee about the motivation for the course, as well as an analysis of what has worked well and what has presented challenges. Faculty are encouraged to include student writing samples.
For more on the award, please visit the faculty pages of the UWC’s Web site at http://uwc.tamu.edu.
