Spring2008 12

Praxis: A Writing Center Journal (20032011) Sections Focus Columns and Reviews Consulting Training News & Announcements

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Featured Center: The Rattler Writing Center Spring 2008 / Consulting

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Students at the Creative Writing Camp at Texas State University

Name of center: The Rattler Writing Center Institutional affiliation: San Marcos High School and The Hays County Juvenile Center City, State: San Marcos, Texas Web address: http://www.writingcenter.txstate.edu Director: Nancy Effinger Wilson Year opened: 2006 History: The Rattler Writing Center opened in the fall of 2006 as a collaborative effort between the San Marcos High School and Texas State University-San Marcos to help high school students prepare their college application and scholarship essays. In the spring of 2007, we received a Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board G-Force grant, and we expanded the SMHS Rattler Writing Center to include a Creative Writing Club and Summer Creative Writing Center. We also opened a satellite writing center at the Hays County Juvenile Center, assisting with their college preparation program. With continued support from our THECB G-Force grant, all of these Rattler Writing Center programs continue to thrive.

Sponsoring department, school, or organization: Texas State University

Writing Center.

Number of consultations in the last year: In the fall of 2007, the Rattler Writing Center tutored 98 students.

Square footage: The Rattler Writing Center at San Marcos High is 360 square feet. The satellite Rattler Writing Center at the Hays County Juvenile Center is 500 square feet.

Services offered: The Rattler Writing Center (RWC) provides individualized writing support to SMHS students at both the main campus and the satellite center at the Hays County Juvenile Center. The RWC also sponsors a Creative Writing Club and a Creative Writing Summer Camp for students who wish to explore writing without the constraints of standardized exams or grades. The Rattler Writing Center's goal is to bridge the gap between high school and college, and to encourage all students to pursue higher education.

Consulting at the Rattler Writing Center

Staff: In the fall of 2007, the Rattler Writing Center had eight tutors (four graduate and undergraduate university students): five at the high school center and three at the Juvenile Center. The tutors were awarded $1,000 G-Force scholarships and asked to volunteer 100 hours. All of the tutors were trained and experienced writing tutors and/or teachers.

Clientele: The Rattler Writing Center clients are high school students—85% Latina/o; 11% European-American; 2.7% African-American; and 1.3% AsianAmerican. Most of the high school Rattler Writing Center clients are working on college application and scholarship essays. They are primarily concerned with answering the question(s) asked and doing so in correct and articulate English.

The students at the Juvenile Center are primarily preparing for the GED. Most of these students are struggling with writing because they have not received adequate instruction in prewriting, organizing, and drafting in the past. Once we offer strategies for producing a quality piece of writing, the students make remarkable progress.

Money Matters: We are lucky to have received a Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board G-Force Grant. However, the grant only covers staff costs; the Texas State University Writing Center provides reference materials, and the San Marcos High School and Hays County Juvenile Center provide office supplies.

Students at the Creative Writing Camp at Texas State University

Current events/programs: In June of 2008, we will once again hold our Summer Creative Writing Camp at the Texas State University Writing Center.

Rattler Writing Center tutors who are enrolled in the Texas State University M.F.A. program serve as the instructors and camp leaders. Last year, many of the Rattler Writing Center clients attended, which provided wonderful continuity for them and us. In addition to attending creative writing classes and workshops, the campers produce a literary journal featuring work produced during the camp. The camp culminates in a public reading at the Katherine Anne Porter House in Kyle, Texas.

Philosophy: We strive to give every student an opportunity to succeed at writing, whether it be an essay for the GED, a college application essay, or a creative piece. We recognize that individualized instruction and support is the optimal means to that goal.

Consulting at the Rattler Writing Center

What else should people know about your center? Such a collaboration between a high school and a university writing center is absolutely do-able.

Even before we had received a grant, our university writing center tutors were volunteering to help high school students with college application essays. ‚ European Writing Centers Association Conference

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