UNC Charlotte Center City Building, 320 E. 9th Street, Charlotte 28202

http://centercity.uncc.edu/

Rooms 506 & 806

10:00 -11:30     Teaching Writing: Professional Development in First-Year Writing Instruction – Roundtable Discussion

11:30 – 1:00      Lunch: Executive Board meeting and Logo Contest (Vote for submitted logo designs for Carolinas WPA!)

1:00 – 2:00       What Are We Reading? Shared Discussions*

2:00 – 3:00       Collaborative Grant** & Proposal Writing:

* If you have a favorite article on rubric design, forward the information to Lynne Rhodes at lynner@usca.edu so that she can make copies available to the group ahead of discussions.

**  Bring ideas and / or drafts of proposals for CCC, SAMLA, WPA, etc.

** If you come with a team from your institution, time can also be spent on writing  with your team for internal or competitive grant to follow up on Wildacres 2012.

Online registration opens Friday, February 3rd. Register for $25 and bring a colleague for free.

At-large North Carolina Representative:

two-year term (Jan. 1, 2012 – Jan. 1, 2014): Patrick Bahls, UNC Asheville

At-large South Carolina Representatives:

one-year replacement term (Jan. 1, 2012-Jan. 1, 2013): Jeremy Jones, Charleston Southern

two-year term (Jan. 1, 2012 – Jan. 1, 2014): Amy Mecklenberg-Faenger, College of Charleston

More details about the meeting will be circulated as February nears.

• one at-large member from North Carolina—2-year term (Jan. 1, 2012 – Jan. 1, 2014)
• one at-large member from South Carolina—2-year term (Jan. 1, 2012 – Jan. 1 2014)
• one at-large member from South Carolina—1-year term (Jan. 1, 2012 – Jan. 1, 2013, to finish the term of Lynne Rhodes, who is becoming President-Elect)

At-large members serve as outreach coordinators and liaisons to schools in their state. In addition, they assist as needed in the planning of the Carolinas WPA’s two annual events: the “Meeting in the Middle” in February and the fall meeting in September.

The terms for new at-large members will begin January 1, 2012, and those elected should plan to attend the Board meeting at the February (dates TBA) “Meeting in the Middle” in Charlotte.

Note that Carolinas WPA Board members must be members of the National Council of Writing Program Administrators (www.wpacouncil.org).

Please send nominations to Wendy Sharer (sharerw@ecu.edu) by Friday October 28^th, 2011.

Carolinas WPA Board 2012

(terms indicated in brackets run January 1 – January 1)

President: Tony Atkins, UNC Wilmington (2012-2014)

President-Elect: Lynne Rhodes, USC Aiken (2012-2014)

Past President: Wendy Sharer, East Carolina (2012-2014)

Treasurer: Nancy Barendse, Charleston Southern (2010-2014)

Secretary: Susan Miller-Cochran, NC State (2011-2013)

Web Manager: Jessie Moore, Elon (2010-2014)

At-large (SC): Vacant, 1 year replacement term (2012-2013)

At-large (SC): Vacant (2012-2014)

At-large (NC): Meg Morgan, UNC Charlotte (2011-2013),

At-large (NC): Vacant (2012-2014)

• Incorporates the name “Carolinas WPA,” since the Council of WPAs often uses the CWPA abbreviation; and
• Better reflects the organization and its representation of both North and South Carolina WPAs.

Logo submissions, which must be appropriate for both web and print materials, are due February 1^st. Carolina WPA members who attend the 2012 Meeting in the Middle will vote for their favorite logo, and the winning designer will receive free registration, room, and board for the 2012 Carolinas WPA Fall Conference.

Please direct all questions and submissions to Jessie Moore, the Carolinas WPA Web and List Manager, at jmoore28@elon.edu.

For your reference, you can view the current logo on the organization’s web site in the top left corner.

We look forward to receiving your submissions!

In 2003, the founding board members successfully proposed the formation of Carolinas WPA as an affiliate of the Council of Writing Program Administrators. The affiliate was developed to encourage communication among community colleges, colleges, and universities, public and private, in North Carolina and South Carolina. Members represent a variety of writing programs, including writing centers, writing across the curriculum programs, first-year writing programs, and professional writing programs. Carolinas WPA enables regional writing program administrators to share concerns and collaboratively respond to issues related to the administration of writing programs.

Thank you, Marsha Lee, Don, Dee, Meg, Paula, and Tim, for your dedicated work on behalf of our organization and our profession!

Exploring the Employment Practices and Working Conditions that Affect Writing Instructors

As we celebrate the 25^th anniversary of the Wyoming Resolution and English Departments and writing programs continue to face challenging budget issues, there has been a recent groundswell of public discussion regarding contingent labor. The March 2011 issue of College English, for example, revisits the Wyoming Resolution and includes a statement from the NCTE College Section Working Group on the Status and Working Conditions of Contingent Faculty. Then in June 2011, the MLA Committee on Contingent Labor in the Profession issued its Professional Employment Practices for Non-Tenure-Track Faculty Members: Recommendations and Evaluative Questions. And currently, Open Words is calling for papers for its “Special Issue on Contingent Labor and Educational Access.” In their article in the aforementioned issue of College English, Lisa Meloncon and Peter England discuss how the department can be a “non-place” for instructors who feel disconnected from that department. The North Carolina Symposium on Teaching Writing is interested in exploring the conditions under which writing instructors currently work as well as facilitating discussion about how instructors and departments can connect–or reconnect. Symposium organizers welcome proposals for panels and papers on a variety of topics; those addressing any of the above concerns will be given special consideration.

Related topics include (but are not limited to):

• Who is teaching writing in post-secondary institutions? What contracts do they have, and what are the terms? What variety exists? What is the status quo?
• How do contract specifications impact writing teachers and writing instruction? What place does/should tenure, extended contracts, or rolling contracts have in this discussion?
• What conditions do graduate students teach in? How does this affect their teaching/studies?
• What role do writing program administrators play in advocating for appropriate working conditions? How do the working conditions for administrators themselves impact the programs they work in?
• How do material working conditions—offices, access to technology, institutional resources, support staff, etc.—affect writing teachers, writing instruction, and students?
• How can teachers and administrators argue for appropriate class sizes and course loads?
• How can writing programs support the professional development of teachers through writing/publishing opportunities, research, conference attendance and participation, etc.?
• How do non-tenure track writing teachers serve their departments, colleges, and universities via committee involvement, etc.? How does this compare to their tenure track counterparts?
• What role do writing programs have in the department and the university at-large in terms of degree requirements and graduation rates (i.e., what leverage do we have)?
• What place could/should career advancement and opportunities for promotions and raises have in writing programs/English Departments?
• What role do professional organizations, unions, faculty governance, student government, etc. play in advocating for better working conditions in writing programs?
• What level of awareness do students (both undergraduate and graduate) and faculty have of working conditions in writing programs? In other departments?

Keynote Speaker: Douglas Hesse is Founding Director of the Writing Program at the University of Denver and Professor of English. A former Chair of the Conference on College Composition and Communication, a former President of the Council of Writing Program Administrators and editor of WPA: Writing Program Administration, Hesse previously taught at Illinois State University, where he directed the Honors Program, the Center for the Advancement of Teaching, the graduate program in English studies, and the writing program.  The DU Writing Program has received the prestigious CCCC Certificate of Excellence.

Specific Guidelines for Submission:

Individual paper proposals should be 200-300 words in length. Panel submissions should not total more than 1000 words. Panels will be 75 minutes in length, including Q&A. All sessions will be held in rooms with Internet access and projection capabilities. Please indicate any other technology requirements. We encourage participation from all faculty ranks, and we particularly encourage contingent faculty, K-12 faculty, TYC faculty, and graduate student participation.

The deadline for proposals has been extended to Friday, October 28^th. Submit proposals as a Microsoft Word compatible attachment (.doc or .docx) or PDF to: Chris Tonelli (catonell@ncsu.edu). PLEASE INCLUDE ALL IDENTIFYING INFORMATION—TITLE, NAME(S), AFFILIATION(S), AND EMAIL ADDRESS(ES)—IN THE EMAIL. THE ONLY IDENTIFYING INFORMATION IN THE PROPOSAL DOCUMENT ITSELF SHOULD BE THE TITLE.

 September 19-21, 2011 | Wildacres, Little Switzerland, NC (Directions)
 

Monday, September 19th

• 4:00-6:00 Check-In, North Lodge Lobby
• 6:30 Dinner
• 7:30 Welcome and Opening Session featuring Susan Miller Cochran, NCSU, discussing the WPA Research Grants
• 8:30 Social/Networking in the Canteen

Tuesday, September 20th

• 8:00 Breakfast
• 9:00-10:30 Finding Funding Opportunities

1)     Finding internal funding sources —Tim Peeples, Elon

2)     Finding national funding sources—Meg Morgan/Boyd Davis, UNC Charlotte

• 10:45-12:30  Grant Writing 101/Finding Regional Funding Sources—Michelle Eble, ECU
• 12:30 Lunch

• 1:30-2:30 What I’ve learned: Stories from 6 years seeking funding from the National Writing Project– Lynne Rhodes, USC Aiken
• 2:30-5:00 Grant writing practice/drafting and working with “roaming consultants” (panelists and speakers)
• 5:00-6:00 Break/outdoor time
• 6:00 Dinner (CWPA Board Meeting)
• 7:30 Social/Bonfire

Wednesday, September 21st

• 8:00 Breakfast
• 8:45-9:45 Closing Session

Call for Proposals

Grants: Finding and Applying for Funding Opportunities

September 19-21, 2011 | Wildacres Retreat, Little Switzerland, NC

*Proposal deadline: Friday, July 15^th*

Conference Theme and Design

In these lean financial times, resources for innovative program development, curriculum design, and WPA-related research is very difficult to come by. As a result, WPAs increasingly need to take part in internal and external grant competitions. To help with this intimidating and often labor intensive process, the Carolinas Council of Writing Program Administrators will focus its annual fall gathering at Wildacres Retreat Center on “Finding and Applying for Funding Opportunities.” The meeting will provide information to help participants identify relevant funding sources and will provide instruction in and hands-on working time for writing grant proposals. We envision the meeting as a terrific opportunity for you and colleagues from your program to locate and begin to pursue grant money, and we hope that the occasion will also give rise to some cross-institutional funding proposals.

Conference Schedule and Format

The format of the conference will encourage full engagement of participants from a broad variety of institutions and programs. We will mix small, working group discussions with larger presentations about grant seeking and grant writing.

The conference will begin at 5:00 pm on Monday, September 19, and will conclude at 10:00 am on Wednesday, September 21.

Featured session leaders include (more may be added)

• Michelle Eble, East Carolina
• Susan Miller-Cochran, NC State
• Tim Peeples, Elon
• Lynn Rhodes, USC Aiken

Proposals

We invite proposals from individuals or groups from schools across the Carolinas. Each proposal should be no more than 700 words and should contain the following:

1)   A description of a project or set of related projects that you and your colleagues (if applicable) hope to secure funding to pursue.

2)   A brief overview of the possible costs involved with this project or set of projects. Rough estimates are fine.

3)   A list of grant-related concerns that you have and/or issues that you would like to discuss with others at the conference.

4)   A brief overview of any fund-seeking successes–research or teaching/administration related–you have had in the past (if applicable).

5)   The names and contact information (email and phone) for each person affiliated with the proposal.

Please be sure to title your proposal and submit it via email to Wendy Sharer (sharerw@ecu.edu) by Friday, July 15, 2011.

Titles and authors of accepted proposals will be included on the conference schedule as formal presentations/contributions. We hope this will open up travel funding for all participants.

NOTE: You do not need to present to attend the conference, but if presenting will help you secure funding, we hope you will consider submitting a proposal either individually or with some colleagues from your institution.

Registration and Cost

The registration price of $165 includes lodging and 5 meals at Wildacres, as well as all conference materials. The registration will open July 15, and the registration deadline is August 31, with no refunds after September 7. Prior to September 7, you may cancel and receive a full refund.

We anticipate that space will be limited. We will maintain a waiting list if you pay the registration fee, which will be returned in full if no openings become available.

Questions or Comments?

Contact Wendy Sharer at sharerw@ecu.edu or 252-328-6698.