FAQs for Faculty
The Center for Writing is not just a valuable resource for your students. We’re also here for you. In addition to our core mission of meeting one-on-one with student writers, we offer a Partnership Program for the Thinking and Writing courses, Writing Assistants to some upper-level courses, and tutor-led workshops on various topics. And we constantly adapt our offerings to incorporate ideas and needs articulated by faculty.
How do I get my students to come to the Center for Writing?
Will I know if my student has seen a tutor?
How can I get students to write more engaged responses to my writing assignments?
I’ve heard about Writing Assistants. How could I get one for my course?
How do I get my students to come to the Center for Writing?
Tell students about the Center.
Most students first learn about the Center through a faculty member.
Require students to visit.
Some professors make a course requirement that students visit the Center during the semester. If you make a mandatory visit arrangement, we do require two considerations from you so that we can meet the needs of the whole college:
- Contact us early in the semester so we know what to expect and can discuss your goals and timing the visits. For scheduling, reach Jahleh Ghanbari at 358-2408 or jghanbari@keene.edu
- Please do not require visits during peak weeks of the semester (the week prior to long breaks such as Thanksgiving and Spring Break, and the two weeks before finals). At these peak times, we need to accommodate many self-initiated visitors.
Invite a tutor to introduce the Center’s services to your class.
Whether you are requiring or suggesting that your students use the Center, tutors are happy to visit your class and explain what we offer to writers. These introductory visits usually take about ten minutes. To schedule a visit, contact Jahleh Ghanbari at 358-2408 or jghanbari@keene.edu
Will I know if my student has seen a tutor?
Typically we do send feedback forms to professors to let them know who came to see us and what we worked on. In the case of mandatory visits, we will automatically send a feedback form, as this is the only way you will know if a student has completed that requirement.
How can I get students to write more engaged responses to my writing assignments?
Come talk with the director.
Meet with Center Director Phyllis Benay to discuss your goals and writing assignments. pbenay@keene.edu or 358-2398
Come talk with a tutor.
Bring a draft of your assignment to a tutor to gain a student’s perspective on how your message might be interpreted. Make an appointment at 358-2412.
I’ve heard about Writing Assistants. How could I get one for my course?
Contact Center Director Phyllis Benay to discuss our Writing Assistant Program.
pbenay@keene.edu or 358-2398