U of A Collaboration Leads to First High School Writing Center in State

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Teachers Julie Phelan (far left) and Matthew Swenson (far right) assist 11th-grade students Jordan Johnson and Madelyn Ramsey in the new Cross County High School Writing Center.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Capitalizing on a collaboration with the Brown Chair in English Literacy at the University of Arkansas, Cross County High School in east Arkansas will open a writing center in August.

The Writing Center at Cross County High, directed by teachers Matthew Swenson and Julie Phelan, will offer one-on-one peer tutoring during the school day and after school. Any student needing assistance with a writing assignment may sign up for the 40-minute sessions. The tutors — juniors and seniors at the high school recommended by their teachers for their strong writing abilities — will take a course on effective writing center practices taught by Swenson.

A regular component of colleges and university support services, writing centers are less common in high schools, and the Cross County center is believed to be the state’s first such facility to be maintained by a secondary school.

 “Writing centers provide the opportunity for a student, no matter what his or her ability level, to get a second set of eyes on a developing paper,” said David Jolliffe, professor of English and Brown Chair in English Literacy at the university. “Writing center tutors don’t grade the paper — that’s the teacher’s job — or edit it for the tutee. Tutors provide valuable feedback, letting the writer know what’s effective in the draft so far and what might be improved by additional revision and work.”

Swenson and Phelan hope to promote a culture change at Cross County High. 

“The writing center will be a place where everyone is a writer,” Swenson said. “Too often, students think they lack intelligence just because they cannot write effectively. They have good ideas but lack some of the basic writing skills. I hope the writing center starts changing the conversation toward building a community with everyone moving forward.”

The idea for the Cross County High Writing Center was motivated by a one-day conference on developing writing centers in secondary schools sponsored by the Brown Chair. Approximately 40 educators from throughout the state heard presentations by Pam Childers, a leading expert on high school writing centers, and Karen Madison, instructor of writing center theory and practice at the University of Arkansas. The conference also featured a series of hands-on sessions devoted to identifying appropriate tutoring materials, selecting and training tutors and running effective tutorial sessions.

“Ideally, Cross County High School can start a trend in the region,” Madison said. “We would be delighted to help other secondary schools that want to follow their lead.”

Swenson and Phelan have launched a website that describes their plans for the Cross County High Writing Center and seeks input on funding possibilities. Future plans for the center include offering outreach sessions on resume writing, college application procedures and creative writing.

“Everyone needs help in writing,” Swenson said. “No one is a perfect writer. We are just at different places in our journey.”

The Brown Chair in English and Literacy is supported by the Brown Foundation and the Walton Family Charitable Support Foundation to increase literacy in Arkansas, such as community-based tutoring, professional development workshops for teachers, summer workshops and reading programs. The chair is housed in the department of English in the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences.