What Do Students Think of the Writing Center?

 PCCC Students come to the Writing Center for one of several reasons. They may be taking a WI course and are required to come for an assignment. They may be taking a WI course and just want a little extra help with their papers. They may be preparing to take the CWE (repeating or for the first time). They may attend a workshop. Or, maybe they have taken a WI course at some point in their college careers and want help with some other writing, whether for a class or for another purpose. Whatever the reason, we are here to help.

How much do students feel they benefit from the services the Writing Center has to offer? Students are given a survey that asks that very question after every workshop and session with a writing consultant. For last academic year (Fall 2010-Spring 2011), about 19% of students who came to the Writing Center were not required to do so. Whether required or not, all students reported that they were satisfied with the service they received, with 92.5% saying they were very satisfied. About 83% said they intended to come back for more help in the future.

The survey also gives a space for students to write their own suggestions for improvement of the Center. The most frequent suggestion was that the Center provide more hours of consulting for students, including late nights (we are currently open until 8) and Saturdays. Other suggestions, such as providing more practice topics for the CWE and more materials on the writing process have already been put into place.

For more information about the Writing Center, including hours and contact information, go to http://pccc.libguides.com/writingcenter.

Graduation Day

PASSAIC COUNTY COMMUNITY COLLEGE 
39TH COMMENCEMENT CEREMONIES
THURSDAY, MAY 19, 2011 6:00 PM
PATERSON CAMPUS

Nearly 600 graduates will receive their degrees and certificates tonight at PCCC's 39th commencement ceremonies tonight.

 

Keynote Speaker: The Honorable Miguel de la Carrera,
Superior Court Judge, State of New Jersey.

Valedictorian: Linda Finnan,
Associate in Arts in Liberal Arts Degree

The commencement ceremony will take place in the gym, with the College Faculty, Administrators, and Staff in attendance, as well as friends and family of the candidates for graduation.

 

New WI Faculty Institute

The next Writing Initiative Faculty Institute will be held May 17 &18 from 9am – 3 pm in the PCCC Writing center.

This Institute is for faculty developing or taking on new sections of WI courses for Fall 2011. This group includes three new WI courses being piloted next semester: SO 102 Institutional Racism, MA 101 College Mathematics I and BS 203 Microbiology. New WI instructors will also be taking on additional course sections of Intro to Literature and Western Civilization I.

TOPICS TO BE COVERED INCLUDE:

• The Writing Initiative Teacher's Handbook
• Writing Initiative goals and requirements
• Using the Writing Center and online resources for online and face-to-face course sections
• Using eTutoring
• A review of the existing course materials: syllabus, assignments etc. and suggestions for WI revisions and additions.
• Hands-on session using LibGuides and making additions to it (links, resources, media objects etc.)
• Student portfolios: objectives, use of the eFolio product, sample student portfolios, grading strategies
• Formal and informal writing
• Responding to and grading student writing for content vs. for writing
• How to evaluate writing for critical thinking and information literacy using the rubrics and templates
• Initiative assessment of WI Courses

PCCC Faculty-Staff Poetry Reading

Maria Mazziotti Gillan

On April 19, 2011, PCCC held the the third annual PCCC Faculty-Staff Poetry Reading, sponsored by the Writing Initiative. The reading, part of the College's celebration of National Poetry Month (April), was held in the Founders Hall Theater.

Ken Ronkowitz

Featured readers were: Dave Bolger, Reading faculty; Christine Redman-Waldeyer, English faculty; Mark Hillringhouse, English faculty; Ken Ronkowitz, Director of the Writing Initiative; and Maria Mazziotti Gillan, Founder and Executive Director of the PCCC Cultural Affairs Poetry Center. The event was coordinated and emceed by Elizabeth Nesius, Writing Center Coordinator.

The featured reading was followed by an open reading. PCCC faculty, staff, and students were invited to read  original poems of their own.

The reading was open to students, faculty, and staff. Tomas Feliciano, PCCC student and winner of the WI Writing Contest, was among those who shared their work with the audience. 

Writing Intensive Courses for Fall 2011

The following Fall 2011 course sections as designated as Writing Intensive courses.

Based on their major, all students who entered PCCC after Fall 2007 are required to take 1 or 2 Writing Intensive courses to graduate. For more information on WI course requirements, go to page 21 in the Academic Bulletin.

Fall 2011 Writing Intensive Courses

Course Code	Course Name	Instructor
Paterson Campus
BS-102-ME1	Biology II	Greidanus
BS 203 M01	Intro to Microbiology	Loving
CIS-101 M04	Computer Concepts and Apps	Bernstein
CT 101 ME1	Critical Thinking	Ronkowitz
EN-205-M02	Intro to Literature	TBA
ENS-106-MHY1	Public Speaking—Hybrid Course	Risher
HI-101-ME2	Western Civilization I	Kaempfen
MA 101 M04	College Math	Corpus
MA 103 M01	Basic Statistics	Sankaran
PH-101-M02	Intro to Philosophy	Fruncillo
PL-101-ME1	Intro to Political Science	Torres
PS-101-ME2	Intro to Psychology	Termanini
SC 104-M01	Environmental Science	D'Ambrosio
SO-202-M01	Cultural Anthropology	Burkhart
Wanaque Campus
PS-101-W03	Intro to Psychology	Murphy
HI-102-W02	Western Civilization II	Drakulich
MA 101 WE2	College Math	Oriente
EN-205-WE2	Intro to Literature	TBA
CT-101-WE1	Critical Thinking	Hillringhouse
BS-101 W01	Biology I	Sloan
Passaic Campus
EN-205-P01	Intro to Literature	TBA
PS-101-P02	Intro to Psychology	Page
Online
AE-101-OL1	Appreciation of Art	Thoubboron
EN-205-OL1	Intro to Literature	TBA
HI-101-OL2	Western Civilization I	Jenkins
HI-101-OL3	Western Civilization I	Brozyna
HI-102-OL2	Western Civilization II	Brozyna
HI-201-OL1	U.S. History I	Perdew
MA 101 OL2	College Math	K. Patel
MU-106-OL2	Appreciation of Music	Ayala
PS-101-OL3	Intro to Psychology	Cianci
RL-101-OL2	Intro to Religion	Nesius
SO 102  OL2	Institutional Racism	White