Description

Writing centers are dynamic, evolving spaces where students, tutors, administrators, and staff engage in intellectual collaboration, mentorship, and emotional support. Writing Centers often offer a wide range of services and programs catering to multiple writing  needs of students and sometimes community members. In short, a writing center is not  one thing, but rather a constellation of people, programs, services, and more that come together to make something meaningful and important.

Similarly, the people who work in writing centers are not one thing. They often juggle  multiple roles and identities. Tutors are not just tutors. They are also students, friends,  colleagues, mentors, and sometimes emotional support resources. Administrators are also teachers, leaders, advisors, scholars, event planners, and supervisors. There are other roles as well—office assistants, finance managers, coordinators, professional staff, and administrative professionals—without whom many writing centers would struggle to function. Similarly, administrators and support staff wear a multitude of hats: they serve as teachers, mentors, supervisors, rule-makers, budget keepers, schedulers, webmasters, scholars, office managers, caterers, maintenance coordinators, and more. Balancing these roles requires skill, patience, and deep reflection.

Furthermore, we recognize that writing centers exist in a variety of contexts that shape their approaches and priorities. The type of institution or the primary student population can largely influence how a center operates, for example. Some institutions house discipline-specific writing centers, such as those dedicated to business or STEM students, while others integrate speaking and writing support under one umbrella. Many feature separate writing support for athletes or honors students as well. These variations inform the ways tutors, administrators, and support staff adapt to the needs of their students and institutions.

The demands of these overlapping roles and contexts make writing center work both intellectually fulfilling and deeply complex. This conference invites participants to examine and share their experiences in navigating these layered responsibilities, celebrating the joys and challenges of each star in the writing center universe.

We invite proposals that explore:

• The emotional labor of writing center work—including its challenges but also the joy that comes with it.

• The multiple roles and identities of writing center employees, from peer, professional, and faculty tutors to administrators and support staff.

• Perspectives from non-tutors who contribute to the writing center's mission, such as front desk or office assistants and administrative staff.

• Diverse tutoring models, including embedded tutoring, writing fellows, peer tutors, professional tutors, and faculty tutors.

• Strategies for acknowledging and navigating the complexity of roles within the writing center.

• Creative approaches to writing center programming, such as uniquely located writing workshops, community-based writing initiatives, or interdisciplinary collaborations.

• The connection between writing and wellness—how writing centers can support student and tutor well-being through reflective practices, stress reduction strategies, and mindfulness-based writing.

• Expanding writing support beyond tutoring sessions—events, partnerships, and campus-wide initiatives that help students see writing as a meaningful, integrated part of their lives.

We welcome submissions from tutors, administrators, faculty, and staff engaged in writing center work.

Session Types

We encourage a variety of session formats to foster discussion, collaboration, and engagement. All sessions will run 75 minutes in length. Proposals should address how presenters will actively engage the audience during their session.

Presenters may choose from the following options:

• Traditional Presentations: Presenters share research, insights, or experiences in a structured talk, followed by a short Q&A. (Typically 15–20 minutes per presenter in a panel format.)

• Workshops: Interactive sessions where presenters guide participants through activities, discussions, or problem-solving exercises related to writing center work.

• Roundtable Discussions: Facilitated conversations where presenters introduce a topic and lead an open discussion among attendees. Ideal for exploring diverse perspectives in an informal setting.

• Lightning Talks: Brief, high-impact presentations (5–10 minutes) designed to spark discussion or showcase innovative ideas in writing center practice.

• Poster Presentations: Visual presentations where participants display research, projects, or initiatives in a format that encourages one-on-one conversations with attendees. This format is ideal for presenters who want to share information in an engaging, accessible way.

• Creative & Experiential Sessions: Sessions that incorporate storytelling, performance, reflective writing, or interactive experiences to explore writing center themes.

• Other Formats: Have an idea that doesn’t fit neatly into these categories? We welcome innovative session types that engage attendees in meaningful ways!

Conference Contacts

 Ashton Foley-Schramm

Associate Director, OU Writing Center

afoleyschramm [at] ou [dot] edu

Talisha Haltiwanger Morrison

Director, OU Writing Center

tmhmorrison [at] ou [dot] edu

General OU Writing Center Inbox (we’ll both get it!)

writingcenter [at] ou. [dot] edu