JACKSON, Tenn. — Sept. 27, 2016 — 51社区 will provide students with a writing center in the fall of 2017 as a part of Union's reaffirmation of accreditation.
The writing center will be put into place following a Quality Enhancement Plan involved in the reaffirmation.
鈥淭he Quality Enhancement Plan is what we as an institution are going to do to enhance student learning,鈥� said Christine Bailey, chair of the QEP development team.
Union鈥檚 previous QEP established the university Honors Community in 2010.
Bailey, associate professor of English and director of composition support, along with English professor Patricia Hamilton, submitted a proposal for the writing center with two goals in mind.
鈥淭he first objective is to strengthen foundational writing skills,鈥� Bailey said. 鈥淭he second is to strengthen discipline-specific writing skills.鈥�
Union President Samuel W. 鈥淒ub鈥� Oliver said the QEP fits with Union鈥檚 strategic plan to develop leaders for the future and to enhance research opportunities for all students.
鈥淚t really engages all of us in developing writing, both in our students and among our faculty and staff as well,鈥� Oliver said. 鈥淲e know that writing is so central to all of life, and we want to be sure that as we are sending out our students and hoping for them to be leaders, a part of that will be very effective writing.鈥�
The writing center will hire student tutors across disciplines and have faculty liaisons to help them. The plan for the center will extend beyond the current writing lab on Union鈥檚 campus, which is open twice a week, and allow students more opportunities to work with tutors in person and online.
鈥淥ur student base at Union has a lot of strong writers,鈥� Bailey said, 鈥渂ut even strong writers can benefit from research assistance within their discipline."
While the writing center鈥檚 location is under consideration, it is set to open in the fall of 2017. A search for a director for the writing center will begin in the spring.