Angela Messenger, CoordinatorJason Newman, Graduate AssistantDavid Nickell, Graduate Assistant(330)941‐3055 wcenter@ysu.edu

What’s the situation?A theme under the Regional Engagement cornerstone of YSU’s 2020 Strategic Plan is “Enriching Quality of Life Through Artistic and Cultural Engagement.” We believe that helping all YSU students is part of the Writing Center mission, and specifically helping creative writing students will enhance the community’s cadre of artists, in particular poets.

“The best way to help creative writing students would be by having highly skilled creative writing tutors in place to help.”– Christopher Barzak,YSU Associate Professor, Fiction Writing 

Through a survey targeted at creative writing students (51) in Spring 2014 as well as communicating with creative writing professors, we discovered:- creative writing professors rarely

recommend their creative writing students to the WC (except for surface level errors);

- students who have used the WC for academic work have not brought in creative writing because they were unaware of such services.

Percentage of Creative Writing Students’ Use of the WC

Never brought2%projects to the WC

Brought academic38%61% project(s) or assumed

WC read onlyacademic projectsBrought creativewriting to the WC

Writing Center employees (16) completed a questionnaire about poetry, which asked them to define poetic terminology and gauged their attitude toward the poetry workshop (referring to when students “workshop” their poetry in a group).

WC Consultants' Description of Poetic Tools (Pre‐training)

6%

Figurative Language25% Emotions19%

General Writing Tools

25% 25% Other Tools

Not Sure

WC Consultants'  Familiarity with Poetry (Pre‐training)

Not Familiar19%

31%ModeratelyFamiliar

50% VeryFamiliar

Student Learning OutcomeWriting Center staff, predominately composed of students, will increase their preparedness to tutor clients (other students) in creative writing, specifically by enhancing their knowledge of poetic terminology and the poetry workshop.

What’s the intent?TrainingAfter analyzing our weaknesses, we trained over several monthly staff meetings:- reviewed handouts WC Consultants' Knowledge of Poetic 

• Rhyme Components (Pre‐training)

• Meter• Poetic Forms

9

8 Above

• Poetic Terms f 7f Average

• Poetic T6 st

a

ools

WC 5 Moderate

- reviewed presentation from Purdue   4

of

- collectively workshopped

  Knowledgea poem

3

- identified staff members who had an

Num

ber

2

1 Needs Review

affinity for poetry/creative writing. 0

Poetic Form Rhyme Meter

Identifying Lead Consultants for Group WorkshopsThree groups of five staff members workshopped a poem with a lead consultant:- a graduate intern pursuing a master’s degree in poetry - a graduate student with a bachelor’s degree from the Pittsburgh Art Institute- a senior Professional and Technical Writing major who was The Penguin Review

editor and Etruscan Press intern.Only half of our staff members had workshop experience since most are not creative writing or English majors. Lead consultants provided feedback to encourage best practices or note areas for improvement.

Evaluating Individual WorkshopsJason Newman evaluated each writing consultant with an original rubric. The face-to-face or online appointments, lasting approximately 45 minutes each, enabled the consultants to use their skills to discuss a poem one-on-one.

Average WC Consultants' Scores from Individual The scores show that writing Poetry Workshops (Post‐training)consultants enhanced or

shop

reinforced their knowledge of rk Sound

poetry. Since five consultants

ow

needed a review of poetic forms,

poetry  Form

Originality

it is impressive that they scored  a

so high in form (average 2.85 of

  Sentiment

3). It is not surprising that the durin

g

Tone

  Imageryweakest area is sound (average

dercove Situation2.57 of 3) since four consultants  

were originally not familiar with eria Assignment

meter or rhyme. Crit 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.9 3 3.1

Rubric scores (0 = poor, 2 = fair, 3 = good)

Can other people relate?To convince students and professors of the WC’s abilities to tutor creative writing, we will:- continue training in other creative writing concentrations (nonfiction, fiction, and

screenwriting/playwriting), - train new tutors using these developed materials, - promote the WC’s creative writing services.

In November 2014, the YSU Creative Writing Workshop began meeting weekly in the WC, peer reviewing their creative writing.

Throughout Summer 2014, the WC staff wrote a script of a short film, borrowed media equipment, and filmed in multiple locations – all on their own time and with their own funds. They hosted a launch party at the WC and had 344 YouTube views within a month of the release of the 28-minute short film “The WC Files.” This spoof of The X Files spreads awareness about the WC so that students might be less anxious about coming to the WC.

WC consultants presented at the 2014 and 2015 Northeast Ohio Writing Centers Association conferences on our creative writing revolution.

“This was a beneficial experience…providing me with betterteaching skills.” – Jason Newman