Center for Writing Excellence open all summer for consultations, workshops

The Center for Writing Excellence will be available to all Augusta University students, faculty and staff throughout the summer sessions.

The CWE will be open from May 15 to Aug. 4, with weekday and weekend hours. Online and in-person writing consultations are available.

In-person consultations will take place at the center’s Summerville Campus location in Allgood Hall, room E158. Summer hours and availability can be found on the CWE website.

“Summer is an especially busy time. We know people are trying to make progress on coursework and projects while also making time to have fun and connect with family and friends. There needs to be balance,” said Candis Bond, PhD, director of the Center for Writing Excellence. “The CWE offers day, evening, and weekend hours as well as three different consultation modalities — in-person, live online, and written feedback online — so that everyone can take advantage of our services in the summer regardless of their schedule. We strive to be as accessible as possible.”

In addition to offering consultations to writers across the university, the CWE will offer several workshops over the summer, including a writing retreat for students writing personal statements for medical or dental school. The CWE will also run its five-part publishing series in June. Those interested in workshops can learn more and register on the website.

“Summer is a great time for faculty and graduate students to make progress on big projects like publications, grant applications and dissertations,” said Bond. “The CWE’s professional staff can help writers make the most of their summer writing time.”

The center is housed within Pamplin College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences but serves students, faculty and staff in all disciplines and colleges across Augusta University.

The center staffs full-time professional writing consultants to support faculty, post-doctoral fellows and graduate students as they work on manuscripts for publication, intramural and extramural funding applications, creative writing, professional dossiers, and dissertations and theses.

The CWE also staffs graduate assistants and undergraduate peer consultants to assist undergraduates and graduate students with coursework, professional documents and creative works. Students, faculty and staff can receive assistance with writing, oral presentations and multimodal compositions at any stage of their composing process — brainstorming, drafting, revising and editing.

“Many writers hesitate to seek support at the CWE because they think it’s only a space for ‘bad writers.’ Nobody wants to be perceived as struggling!” said Bond. “But the CWE serves writers of all backgrounds and abilities, from dual-enrolled high school students taking their first college course to senior, published faculty who are prolific writers and researchers.

“We work with people who identify as writers as well as people who are still building their skills. Talking to someone else about your writing is just good practice — the best writers do it all the time. Writing is a social activity. Our writing gets better the more we share it with different audiences and get feedback. The trained staff at the CWE help you develop a personalized writing process that works for you so you can submit the best work possible.”

Faculty interested in integrating more writing and communication assignments into their curriculum can also find support at the CWE. Faculty, program directors, and department chairs can schedule curriculum consultations with professional staff, or they can request in-class workshops or resources for their courses. The center also offers a variety of digital tools and resources on its website.

For more information, email the CWE or call 706-667-4722.