history

The Writing Fellows program is based on a model initiated at Brown University more than a decade ago and now in place at many campuses across the country, including Michigan, Harvard, Swarthmore, and Penn. The program supports both students and faculty in writing-intensive and Communications-B courses. It places undergraduates in positions of intellectual leadership, emphasizes the significance of writing skills, and applies the concept of peer mentoring to the process of writing papers. It also creates new opportunities for intellectual exchange between and among students and faculty.

Developed under the joint auspices of the Writing Center and the L&S Pathways to Excellence Program, the Writing Fellows Program is funded by the College of Letters and Science. It extends the writing instruction and support provided by the Writing Center and the Writing-Across-the-Curriculum Program and, at the same time, offers an exciting opportunity to involve undergraduates more deeply in the teaching mission of the university.

Writing Fellows initiate discussions about writing outside the classroom by reading students' work in progress, listening to students' writing concerns, and making constructive suggestions for revision. Through this process, the Fellows seek to gain a fuller understanding of writing across academic disciplines, to share their enthusiasm with their peers, and to improve their own writing. As role models and peer tutors, Fellows can do more than help your students make better decisions as writers; they can also encourage your students to take themselves more seriously as writers and thinkers.