Iowa Writing Project History
The History of IWP: A One-pager
By Dr. James Davis
Convened in December 1977, representatives of the Iowa Department of Education (DE), the English Department and Rhetoric Program at the University of Iowa (UI), and Area Education Agencies (AEAs) 9,10, 15 & 16 agreed on the importance of writing in K-12 classrooms and the feasibility of enhancing instruction in writing and the use of writing to learn across disciplines. They charged Jim Davis, Grant Wood AEA 10, with writing an application for Title IV-C funds to launch the Southeast Iowa Writing Project. Federal IV-C funding came through the DE Division of Research and Assessment directed by Max Morrison; AEAs were eligible applicants. Funded early in 1978 for immediate implementation, Davis became Project Director; Cleo Martin (UI) was named Co-director. With Dick Hanzelka (AEA 9), Bob Thomas (AEA 15) and Chris Rauscher (AEA 16), comprising the Project Steering Committee, the first 3-week institute (collegial exploration of pedagogy; writing workshop) occurred on campus (UI) that summer with 6 teachers participating from each of the four AEAs. It carried 4 sem. hours of graduate credit through UI Continuing Education with a follow-up conference part of the expectation.
As planned, an institute met in each of the 4 AEAs in 1979 and 1980. Attention across the state called for access beyond SE Iowa, so the project became IWP, responding to calls from: consultant colleagues in AEAs 1, 2, 12, 13; curriculum leaders in Ft. Dodge, Des Moines, Red Oak, etc. and teacher leaders in Cedar Rapids, Marshalltown, Cedar Falls, Spirit Lake; faculty leaders at Morningside and Northwestern. IV-C funding supported six years of work. In the mid-1980s Iowa provided for a local district levy, often called 1% money, to support curriculum and professional development. Many districts invested in IWP as a PD vehicle, fueling expansion of IWP in the late 1980s, conducting over 30 institutes in one summer and 1000 teachers attending a fall conference. Along the way additional opportunities included a second institute (Level II), a journal-based Seminar in Reflective Practice during the school year, a Workshop on Writing and Literature, Writing from Historical Documents in cooperation with the Hoover Presidential Library, Memoir Writing, Workshops in Teacher Leadership, and workshops for administrators.
The early 1990s presented two challenging invitations. One from the Carver Foundation resulted in funding for Writing to Learn Across the Curriculum. Piloted in the Laurens-Marathon CSD, WAC involved a building or district cohort of teachers in Level I one summer, the Seminar in Reflective Practice the following school year and Level II the next summer. Teachers earned 11 hours of credit through their immersion in Writing to Learn. A second invitation involved IWP, in collaboration with NWP sites, in pursuit of federal funding for writing and a national network of professional development sites. Success depended in part on Iowa’s Representative Smith and Senator Harken, Chairs of their respective Appropriations Committees.
In 1997 UNI became IWP’s graduate credit source and the Project relocated to UNI in 2003. IWP became an important feature of the MA:TESS program but reduced activities as NWP funding declined. Full circle, IWP faces it’s original needs: collaborative institutional support, committed teacher leadership, and an ethic of rich, informed professional growth.
Past IWP Directors
Cleo Martin
An anchor in the SUI NDEA Institutes for HS English Department Chairs and the NEH Institutes for College Directors of Freshmen Composition, Cleo was a co-founder, then co-director of IWP in 1978. She co-facilitated summer institutes for the next 16 years and was part of many program developments, including advanced workshops and the annual conference. Best known for her empathetic responses to student writers (all of us), Cleo also composed lists: "Notes from Cleo - Some Observations About the Teaching of Writing," "Problems in the Teaching of Writing," "Obligations of Writing Teachers."
Dr. James Davis
After teaching and serving as department chair through an innovative curriculum development process, Jim completed an MA ('71) and a PhD ('73) in English Education at the University of Missouri. He worked with NCTE and two affiliates in Missouri as well. He became a consultant at the Joint County School System (AEA) in Cedar Rapids in August '73 and soon joined ICTE. He was elected to the Presidential sequence at the spring meeting in 1974.
As ICTE President Jim lobbied for DE investment in PD for teachers of writing. In 1977, having co-convened with Richard Lloyd-Jones (SUI) a meeting of faculty, consultants, curriculum leaders and DE staff, Jim wrote a Title IV-C funding application leading to the Iowa Writing Project. He became Director with Cleo Martin as Co-director; Dick Hanzelka (AEA 9), Bob Thomas (AEA 15) and Chris Rauscher (AEA 16) completed a Steering Committed.
Following the first summer institute in 1978, IWP grew rapidly, from four institutes in '79 to thirty+ institutes per summer by the late '80s. Title IV-C led to state one percent funding, fueling expansion statewide. For two decades a fall conference extended the PD experience with IWP teacher leaders and national figures sharing their expertise. Additional opportunities developed, including Level II, a seminar in reflective practice, a workshop in writing and literature, and numerous others - most carrying graduate credit. IWP consistently fostered collaboration across program levels, preK-12 - college.
In the early '90s funding from the Carver Trust supported a Writing to Learn, Learning to Transform initiative, allowing building/district cohorts of teachers to experience Level I, a school year seminar and Level II the next summer - earning 11 hours of credit.
In 1992 IWP joined other site leaders in a successful pursuit of Federal funding for the NWP network. Sustaining funding meant thorough reporting and careful advocacy with federal legislators, but the support carried the Project into a new century.
UNI became the IWP credit source in 1997 and its home in 2003. The flagship institute was part of the regeneration of an MA:TESS program serving several cohorts of teachers through on-site and distant learning. Drawing on NCTE and NWP experience, Jim designed a unique TESS course, Milestone Studies in Teaching English, a history of our profession. He last taught the course, and retired at the end of, fall semester 2018.
Dr. Dick Hanzelka
Dr. Dick Hanzelka has been involved in the Iowa Writing Project since its inception. He has served on the Steering Committee, on the Board of Directors, and on the teaching faculty of the summer workshops. He was a founder and Director of the Eastern Iowa Writing Project under the auspices of the IWP. The initial EIWP was sponsored with Marycrest University and then with St. Ambrose University.
Dick has taught at the elementary, secondary, and university levels and has served as a Language Arts Consultant, Staff Development Coordinator, and Organizational Planning Director at the Mississippi Bend AEA. He was Chair of the Education Department at Marycrest until it closed and then became a Professor at St. Ambrose University in Teacher Education. Dick holds a PhD in English Education and Administration from the University of Iowa. He is Past President of ASCD where he served as President in 2006-2007. In retirement, Dick is Professor Emeritus from St.Ambrose. Dick’s career spanned fifty-three years including three retirements!
Dick’s career has been dedicated to empowering students and educators in their pursuit of knowledge and practical applications of their skills. The ultimate aim of his work has been to focus on the strengths of learners.
We will add a link to the searchable database for the IWP archives soon. For now please go to libarchives@uni.edu to access archive materials.