The Writing Center at UWRF

The Writing Center is a place where students receive friendly, competent assistance to help them improve their writing. The Center provides one-on-one tutorial sessions.

The Writing Center staff consists of undergraduate students, from a variety of majors. Writing Center tutors are carefully chosen and trained to help students make improvements in their writing. The Director of the Writing Center is Professor Mialisa Moline of the English Department.

The Writing Center is not a proofreading, rewriting, or correcting service, or a guarantee of better grades.  It is a place where tutors can help students learn to write more effectively on their own.

Who can benefit by going to the Center?

Undergraduate and graduate students enrolled in classes from all subject areas can visit the Center for assistance in all stages of the writing process (pre-writing, organizing, writing, revising), in order to improve as writers. 

When can students use the Center?

Students can stop by the Center anytime; however, we encourage students to meet with a tutor on a regular basis if they want to significantly improve their writing. Each tutor works a limited number of hours; students need to make an appointment ahead of time.

An Introduction for Students on How to Use the Writing Center

Welcome to the Writing Center! We understand that asking for assistance with your writing may be difficult. Each of us assumes that we should be able to write well without any effort. The truth is that almost everyone feels anxious about writing and that nearly everyone's writing needs objective feedback and positive reinforcement. The Writing Center is the right place to get that kind of assistance.

Writing involves many steps: thinking, re-thinking, re-stating, organizing, re-organizing, expanding, deleting, re-explaining, and so forth. Writing is time consuming, and sometimes frustrating.

We would like to simplify this process as much as we can; first, by getting to know you and how you think and write, then by pointing out your writing strengths and encouraging you to do your best thinking. To do this, we ask questions, discuss, and brainstorm together. You do the writing; we help with the process.

Here are our suggestions for receiving the best help in the least amount of time:

1. Before you even begin to write, bring in your assignment instructions. Talk over the assignment with one of us.
2. After you've started to write, bring in a rough draft. We will read it, ask questions, and help you focus the ideas and expand the development.
3. At your next session, your revised work will be much closer to the final product. Together we will talk about further writing issues like expansion and deletion, transitions between ideas, and the presentation of the final product.

"But I only wanted my punctuation checked," you say. Our experience has demonstrated to us that students only have anxiety about WRITING. They frequently assume that flawless punctuation equals fine writing. Effective writing means good ideas carefully explained. Our interest in the Writing Center is to help you state your ideas strongly and clearly. We are not a proofreading service; we are trained consultants, experienced writers, who like to help students do their best.

225 Kleinpell Fine Arts
Phone: 715-425-3608

The UWRF Department of English also offers writing assistance through our Online Writing Lab.