Justin J. Bain
PhD Student in Composition and Cultural Rhetoric
Syracuse University
315-443-1412
jjbain@syr.edu

---

Education Teaching Projects Resources Home

Proposal: To Begin a Self-Assessment of the Writing Center Bruce Pegg, Director, Syracuse University Writing Center Justin Bain, Assistant Director, Syracuse University Writing Center September 5, 2002 Purpose. There are a number of compelling reasons for undergoing a self-assessment this semester. Among them are • To articulate the Writing Center’s current mission, staffing arrangements and services, and to identify areas of strength and weakness in all • To To articulate a strategic plan for the next few years of operation, which will identify future staffing arrangements, services, research and professional development opportunities, and specific funding requests • To To inform the WP faculty and staff of writing center work and issues • To To provide administrative experience for Justin Bain • To To provide a context for assessing Bruce Pegg’s work as the current administrator of the Writing Center • To Because a self-assessment of this sort has never been conducted by the Center • To To establish criteria, methods, and schedules for future evaluations Methods of Assessment. We would like to survey all stakeholders in the Writing Center Students. All students using the services will be asked to fill out an evaluation form similar to the one contained in the proposal for consultant evaluation. In addition, we would like to survey a number of students who have not used the services; this would take the form of a survey administered to about 100 students in randomly selected WRT classes Consultants. All current and a number of former consultants will be surveyed on issues regarding their job satisfaction, training, engagement with writing center theory and literature, attitudes about the position, and recommendations about current and future programs and services offered by the Center Faculty. We would like to survey both Writing Program and non-Writing Program faculty for their current perceptions about the Center and its mission, and their ideas for how the Center could more effectively augment their own pedagogies. We will involve Bron Adam in this particular phase of the assessment process, soliciting her thoughts and suggestions Staff. If the recently proposed arrangement with Student Affairs occurs, a brief report on that arrangement and its implications for future services to campus staff will be included Timetable September 20 Collection of student user survey data begins October 14 Distribution of consultant and faculty surveys October 21 Distribution of student non-user surveys to classes November 1 Collection of consultant, non-user and faculty surveys November 8 Collection of student survey data ends December 3 Distribution of report at administrative staff meeting; report also made available for program-wide discussion December 17 Discussion of report and program responses to it and agreement on goals at administrative staff meeting Spring 2003 Implementation of goals agreed on in December 17 staff meeting