At the July meeting of the Council of Writing Program Administrators in Tempe, Arizona, Gail Shuck was announced as the winner of the 2005-2006 Best Article Award for work published in Writing Program Administration. The winning article, “Combating Monolingualism: A Novice Administrator’s Challenge” appeared in the Fall, 2006 issue of the journal (30.1-2), a special issue devoted to the topic of second language writers and writing program administrators.

The selection committee consisted of Rebecca Moore Howard (Syracuse University), Joseph Janangelo (Loyola University), Rita Malencyk (Eastern Connecticut State University), and Stephen Wilhoit (University of Dayton).

In recommending this article to the Executive Board of the WPA, selection committee chair Rebecca Moore Howard wrote:

"We offer this article for your consideration because of its effective blend of local narrative, theory, and concrete recommendations for meeting the needs of both first- and second-language speakers, an issue of increasing importance to WPAs. Shuck doesn’t offer a single solution for a complex problem; instead, she describes both global and local remedies in an action plan that is both specific and generative. We believe the article will be influential for practitioners at both two- and four-year institutions and that it will also be useful in teacher preparation courses. Shuck’s appendix of linguistically inclusive classroom strategies is itself a model of inclusion; it incorporates suggestions not onely from administrators but also from students."

Gail Shuck is an assistant professor of English and coordinator of English Language Support Programs at Boise State University.