11/01/2024

November Update

A Monthly Update for Members

Dear Members,

Hello! Here are the updates we’ll be covering in this November update: 

• 2025 Conference Update
• Opportunities to Lead in CWPA
• Events in October, November, and December

Conference Update

The CWPA Annual Conference will be held July 10-11, 2025, and delivered online as synchronous Zoom sessions. We look forward to releasing our Call for Proposals within the next two weeks, so please keep an eye on your email!

If you’re interested in assisting with the proposal-reviewing process, please submit your interest here https://forms.gle/aoprvfCtYw1h3C9T9  

Opportunities to Lead

1. Sponsored panel at International Writing across the Curriculum Conference (applications due November 15)

Our colleagues at Association for Writing across the Curriculum have invited CWPA to offer a sponsored panel at the International Writing across the Curriculum conference, which will be held in Fort Collins, Colorado at Colorado State University next summer (July 16-19, 2025)! The theme of the conference is “WAC and the Global Future: Flexibility, Action, Innovation.” You can read the full call for papers here. Accepted panelists will be given a discount to register for the conference.

To apply for a speaking role in this panel, please email the following to councilofwpa@gmail.com: a title, an abstract (around 200 words), a short explanation of how your proposal connects to both the conference theme and to writing program administration work (around 75-150 words), and your name, institutional affiliation, and contact email.

Please submit your application by November 15. You’ll be notified of the status of your proposal and provided information about the next steps by December 1. This is a wonderful opportunity to attend a conference by a sister organization in a beautiful setting, represent CWPA, and present the good work you are doing in your writing program. As someone who used to live in Colorado, I highly encourage you to visit in the summer!

2. Seeking Co-Facilitator for Summer 2025 and 2026 Workshop (applications due by December 1)

The annual summer workshop for new and continuing WPAs is one of the hallmarks of our organization. In 2025, David Green will be leading this 3-day experience, and applications are open to be his co-facilitator. Anyone in the field may apply, though the person selected will need to be a member of the organization by the time the workshop begins. We are looking for experienced WPAs who can bring mentorship and expertise to the table–and represent diverse WPA identities and institutional homes. Folks from two-year colleges, HSIs, HBCUs and tribal colleges are especially welcome to apply. The benefits for the co-facilitator include an honorarium that will cover hotel and travel, an opportunity to have an impact through mentoring new and continuing WPAs, and the chance to serve in a leadership role at the national level. The co-leader selected for 2025 will lead the workshop in 2026 and have an opportunity to share established content and information that benefits WPAs and to add their focus to the workshop. Here’s David’s vision for 2025: 

The 2025 CWPA workshop will build on the previous year’s workshop through a focus on navigating social and professional change in equitable ways. Change is a constant that impacts higher education and writing program administration with the consistency of weather. Technology, social policies, social injustice, discrimination, war, genocide all contribute to campus environment, student dispositions, and critical thought in ways that are difficult to predict, and sometimes difficult to navigate. We will engage in an interactive and dynamic workshop that focuses on the role of social impact on institutional mission to the development of a program profile that embraces and engages student voice, and the recognition of harm as a part of administrative literacies essential to navigating change at the ever-evolving modern University.  

To apply to be a co-leader, please send a letter of interest (no more than 500 words, please) and an abbreviated CV to CWPA secretary Amanda Presswood by December 1 at cwpasecretary@gmail.com. Your letter should explain who you are, why you want to serve, and what you’ll bring to the workshop. Applications will be reviewed by current and past facilitators of the workshop who are currently serving on the EB and a co-leader will be notified by December 15, 2025.

3. Call for the Next Editor/Editorial Team for WPA: Writing Program Administration (applications due February 15)

 The Council of Writing Program Administrators is seeking the next editor or editorial team for its journal, WPA: Writing Program Administration. The term is for three years, with possibility for two-year renewal Our current editorial team of Tracy Ann Morse, Patti Poblete, and Wendy Sharer will conclude their term with the spring 2026 (49.2) issue.

The new editor or editorial team will work with the current team to publish content already in development and process submissions in fall 2025 and spring 2026, and assume full responsibility for content and production beginning with the fall 2026 (50.1) issue.

Interested applicants should have the following qualifications: publications and expertise in the field of writing program administration and related areas; knowledge of the issues that have preoccupied the field, both historically and in the recent past; familiarity with the journal, an understanding of the role the journal plays in the field and a vision for the journal’s future; a commitment to diversity and inclusive editorial practices; current membership in and a history of involvement with CWPA; strong editorial and organizational skills; and prior editorial and reviewing experience.

We especially encourage applications from marginalized and underrepresented scholars and prospective editorial teams.

To apply, please submit an application letter explaining why you are qualified for this position and describing any resources or support your institution(s) will be able to provide (released time, clerical support, startup funds, etc.), as well as resources you will request from CWPA. Applicants should also submit a current c.v. for each member of the prospective editorial team. If you are proposing an editorial team, please explain how you will work together on editing and production of the journal. Upon request, additional information about editorial responsibilities and workflow, journal finances, and production timelines will be made available to prospective editors. Address queries to Jacob Babb, Chair of the Publications Committee, at babbjs@appstate.edu. Send the application electronically as a single file to Jacob Babb at babbjs@appstate.edu.

Application Deadline: February 15, 2025. Members of the Publications Committee will review materials and select applicants to invite for virtual interviews to be held in March 2025. We hope to finalize an agreement with the new editor or editorial team no later than May 15, 2025.

 CWPA Events November, and December

Participation in CWPA events so far has been excellent! We’ve appreciated the 20+ folks who attended our first cultural assessment conversation, and 12-15 folks who have attended each of the PD workshops so far. Continue to take advantage of these opportunities for critical reflection and professional development. 

November 8: CWPA Cultural Assessment Conversation Theme 2, Inclusion and Validation

• Facilitators: Jacob Babb and Patti Poblete
• Date and time: 11/8, 90 minutes, 11-12:15pm ET
• Meeting platform: Zoom
• Cost to members and nonmembers: Free

This 75-minute conversation will unpack Theme 2 of the 2023 Cultural Assessment Report (pages 11-13). The conversation will involve the opportunity to respond to the theme in writing and discussion. Participants will also have a chance to review themes that emerged in the survey / conversation on 8/23 regarding Theme 1.

November 15: “Leveraging Student Self-Assessment to Enhance Writing Programs Workshop”

• Facilitators: Annie Mendenhall and Chris Cartwright
• Date and time: 11/15, 90 minutes, 2-3:30pm ET
• Meeting platform: Zoom
• Cost to Members: $15;  Graduate Student Members: Free

Description: This interactive workshop will present strategies for implementing student self-assessment surveys in writing program assessment. We will share findings from three years of data collection from a first-year writing program at a large public university. We will invite participants to consider how student self-assessment can be used to advocate for different writing program needs, to inform faculty development, and to identify disparate student experiences.

December 13: “Mindful Leadership for Writing Program Administrators: Recognizing Values and Setting Intentions”

• Facilitator: Susan Miller Cochran
• Date and time: 12/13, 90 minutes, 2-3:30pm ET
• Meeting platform: Zoom
• Cost to Members: $15;  Graduate Student Members: Free

Have you found yourself wishing you had space to reflect on your administrative work, set priorities, and perhaps just breathe? Join this two-part workshop on mindful leadership, focused on writing program administration, led by Susan Miller-Cochran. Registration for the December workshop will include registration for a workshop in May, “Mindful Leadership for Writing Program Administrators: Exercising Compassion through(out) Reflection.” Reserve your seat now for this BOGO offer!  

Click here to register for these events

Please reach out to us if you’d like to discuss any aspect of CWPA–our emails are below!

Until next month, stay well!

Kelly Blewett, CWPA President, councilofwpa@gmail.com
Erin Lehman, CWPA Vice President, elehman4@ivytech.edu 
Amanda Presswood, CWPA Secretary, cwpasecretary@gmail.com
Christal Seahorn, CWPA Treasurer, cwpatreasurer@gmail.com