Woodbury University2013 Institution Survey

Sites of writing--General Description

Does your institution have an official writing program or department? (n=671)

Yes

What is the institutional home of the writing program or department? (n=248)

Other academic department

Does your institution have first-year writing? (n=673)

Yes

Is first-year writing part of the writing program or department? (n=646)

Yes

Does your institution have writing across the curriculum (WAC)? (n=671)

No

Does your institution have writing in the disciplines (WID)? (n=674)

No

Does your institution have an undergraduate writing major? (n=673)

No

Does your institution have an undergraduate writing minor? (n=676)

No

Does your institution have a graduate program in writing/rhetoric? (n=677)

No

Does your institution have a writing center or learning center with writing tutors? (n=679)

Yes

Is the writing center part of the writing program or department? (n=654)

Yes

Does your institution have a basic writing program? (n=675)

Yes

Is the basic writing program part of the writing program or department? (n=357)

Yes

Sites of writing--Writing Requirement

Does your institution have a writing requirement? (n=668)

No

Are there curricular requirements that are not part of the writing requirement but that have writing as an explicit goal? (n=657)

Yes

What curricular requirements have writing as an explicit goal? (n=342)

There are other requirements where writing is an explicit goal.

Sites of writing--College Writing Goals

Are there college-wide student writing goals? (n=660)

No

Sites of writing--National Survey of Student Engagement

Does your institution administer the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE)? (n=667)

Yes

How does your writing program use the NSSE data? (n=425)

Data used for assessment.

Is your school part of the WPA/NSSE Consortium for the Study of Writing in College? (n=494)

Yes

Sites of writing--Changes to Writing Program

Have there been changes to the writing program or sites of writing at your institution in the past 10 years? (n=666)

Yes

Were there changes to the writing requirement in the past 10 years? (n=585)

Yes

Which changes have taken place in regards to the writing requirement? (n=382)

The writing requirement was expanded.

Writing-intensive courses were added to the writing requirement.

Other

Were there changes to the assessment of writing at your institution over the past 10 years? (n=589)

Yes

Which changes have taken place in regards to assessment? (n=437)

Other

Were there any changes to the administrative structures of the writing program or the sites of writing over the past 10 years? (n=597)

No

Was the writing program changed in the past 10 years to expand or eliminate areas? (n=609)

Yes

How did the writing program change? (n=346)

A writing center was added.

The writing program became an independent program or department.

Other

Were there changes to the staffing of the writing program or center over the past 10 years? (n=595)

Yes

Which changes to the staffing of the writing program or center have taken place over the past 10 years? (n=412)

Part-time teaching positions were added.

Full-time, non-tenure-line teaching positions were added.

Peer tutoring positions were added.

Were there any additional changes to the writing program or the sites of writing at your institution not already mentioned? (n=588)

No

Do you foresee changes to the administrative, curricular, or support structures of the sites of writing at your institution over the next five years? (n=661)

Yes

What type of changes to the administrative, curricular, or support structures of the sites of writing at your institution do you foresee in the next five years? (n=484)

Changes to the curricular structures or writing requirement

Changes to assessment

Changes to the administrative structures

Changes to expand the writing program or sites of writing on campus

Other

If you foresee changes to the administrative, curricular, or support structures of the sites of writing at your institution over the next five years feel free to explain.

Another full-time position will be added. Presently, the department has three full-time positions. The department will have a writing major.

First-year writing/English composition--General Description

Does your institution have a first-year writing requirement whether explicit or embedded? (n=672)

Yes

How many semesters/courses of first-year writing are required? (n=575)

2

By when must the second semester course be completed? (n=316)

Other

How would you describe your first-year writing requirement? (n=577)

FYC

First-year writing/English composition--Placement and Transfer

Does your institution allow students to place out of FYC? (n=443)

Yes

What is your program's placement mechanism?

FYWS (n=18)FYC (n=373)
SAT/ACT
AP/IB
CLEP
In-house exam
Directed self-placement
PortfolioYes
Dual enrollment/ transfer
Other

Does your institution accept transfer credit for FYC? (n=454)

Yes

Who approves transfer credit for FYW courses? (n=539)

WPA

Registrar

Department chair

First-year writing/English composition--Goals and Assessment

Are there explicit goals for FYC? (n=463)

Yes

Are FYC goals informed by the WPA Outcomes Statement? (n=416)

Yes

How are the goals for FYW courses assessed?

FYWS (n=66)FYC (n=381)
Paper portfolio
E-portfolioYes
Random sample
Exam
Professor evaluation
None
Course evaluation
Student survey
OtherYes

Who participates in the assessment of the goals for FYW courses?

FYWS (n=53)FYC (n=326)
WPAYes
Writing facultyYes
Institutional faculty
Outside evaluators
English faculty
Department chairYes
Other

First-year writing/English composition--Curriculum

What is the content of the FYC requirement? See Note 5. (n=456)

Literature

Genre/Modes

Writing About Writing (WAW)

Themes

WAC/Topic Based

Other

What is the other content of the FYC requirement?

We have course templates with held-in-common learning outcomes; however, individual faculty create the paper assignments to meet the learning outcomes. All syllabi are checked for meeting template requirements. One course, however, that is a special "WID" course embedded in FYC has less freedom for professors to create paper assignments. One FYC course has sustainability as a theme. In general, writing courses are meant to prepare students for writing in disciplines other than English.

Is there a common syllabus for FYC courses? (n=457)

No

First-year writing/English composition--Enrollment Caps

What is the enrollment cap for regular sections of FYC? (n=451)

20

What is the enrollment cap for basic writing sections of FYC? (n=286)

15

First-year writing/English composition--Staffing

In the 2011-12 academic year, what percentage of FYC courses were taught by: See Note 2a. (n=422)

Full-Time, Tenure Track English FacultyFull-Time, Tenure Track Writing FacultyFull-Time, Tenure Track Other FacultyFull-Time, Non-Tenure Track English FacultyFull-Time, Non-Tenure Track Writing FacultyFull-Time, Non-Tenure Track Other FacultyPart-time English FacultyPart-time Writing FacultyEnglish Graduate TAsWriting Graduate TAsOther Graduate TAsWPAOther
0%YesYesYesYesYesYesYesYesYesYes
1-5%
6-15%Yes
16-25%
26-35%
36-50%
51-60%
61-75%
76-85%
86-99%Yes
100%

Is there faculty or professional development available for those teaching FYC? (n=457)

Yes

What form does the faculty development take for FYW faculty?

FYWS (n=70)FYC (n=373)
Requried pedagogy course taught by the WPA
Required faculty development workshopsYes
Optional graduate pedagogy course
Optional faculty development workshopsYes
Individual meetings with the WPA/WCDYes
OtherYes

Do those attending faculty development for FYC receive additional compensation? (n=411)

Yes

Identifying and supporting diversely-prepared students--General Description

Does your institution identify students who may need additional writing support, including students whose primary language is not English? (n=626)

Yes

How does the institution identify these students? (n=483)

Placement test

Advisor referral

Faculty referral

writing center tutor referral

What types of supports are available to those students? (n=489)

Special sections of FYW

Summer bridge program

Peer tutoring

Professional tutoring, not the WPA or WCD

Identifying and supporting diversely-prepared students--Basic Writing

Does your institution have a formal basic writing program? (n=493)

No

Identifying and supporting diversely-prepared students--Support for English Language Learners

Is there support for English Language Learners (ELLs)? (n=484)

Yes

Is support for ELLs separate from basic writing? (n=417)

Yes

What type of supports are available for ELLs? (n=412)

Targeted optional writing courses

Peer tutoring

Tutoring from the WPA or WCD

Workshops

Does your institution offer ELL writing classes? (n=408)

Yes

What percentage of the student body is placed into ELL writing courses? See Note 4. (n=160)

1

How are students identified and/or placed into ELL writing courses? (n=239)

Admissions office/ atudent affairs referral

What is the institutional home of the ELL writing courses? (n=241)

Writing deparment/program

Writing across the curriculum (WAC) and writing beyond the first year--General Description

Does your institution have a WAC program and/or writing requirement beyond the first year? (n=642)

No

The undergraduate and graduate writing major and minor--Description of Undergraduate Major

Does your institution have a writing major? See Note 3. (n=656)

No

The undergraduate and graduate writing major and minor--Description of Undergraduate Minor

Does your institution have a writing minor? (n=656)

No

The undergraduate and graduate writing major and minor--Description of Graduate Programs

Does your institution offer a masters degree (M.A.) in writing, other than creative writing? (n=656)

No

Does your institution have a Ph.D. program in writing, other than creative writing? (n=654)

No

Writing centers--General description

Does your institution have a writing center or learning center with writing tutors? (n=676)

Yes

Is the writing center free-standing or part of another institutional unit? (n=612)

Part of another institutional unit

If the writing center is not free-standing, what larger institutional unit is it a part of? (n=379)

Rhetoric/writing department or program

Where is the writing center located? Note: From this point on writing center refers to both free-standing and those located within another unit. (n=612)

Academic building

Is there a mission statement for the writing center? (n=610)

Yes

Are there explicit goals for the writing center? (n=610)

Yes

How are the goals assessed? (n=423)

Student feedback forms

Center usage statistics

What services does the writing center offer? (n=610)

Face-to-face consultations

Online feedback via e-mail (asynchronous)

Writing centers--Consultations

How many face-to-face consultations were offered in the Fall of 2011? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=225)

2,475

How many face-to-face consultations were offered in the Spring of 2012? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=224)

3,630

How many face-to-face consultations were offered in the Summer of 2012? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=223)

1,032

How many face-to-face consultations were conducted in the Fall of 2011? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=440)

769

How many face-to-face consultations were conducted in the Spring of 2012? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=440)

596

How many face-to-face consultations were conducted in the Summer of 2012? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=428)

47

How many online consultations were conducted in the Fall of 2011? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=427)

603

How many online consultations were conducted in the Spring of 2012? See Note 2b & 4. (n=427)

350

How many online consultations were conducted in the Summer of 2012? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=425)

61

What percentage of the undergraduate student body had a writing center consultation during the 2011-12 academic year? See Notes 2a & 4. (n=316)

29

Does your writing center work with graduate students? (n=580)

Yes

How many writing center consultations did your center conduct with graduate students during the 2011-12 academic year? See Notes 2a & 4. (n=184)

248

What percentage of the graduate student body had a writing center consultation during the 2011-12 academic year? See Notes 2a & 4. (n=122)

11

What is the average length of a consultation or tutorial session offered? (n=574)

30 minutes

Writing centers--Consultants

Are some or all of your writing center consultants undergraduate students? (n=561)

Yes

Are some or all of your writing center consultants graduate students? (n=546)

No

Are some or all of your writing center consultants faculty who teach in the writing program? (n=548)

No

Are some or all of your writing center consultants faculty who teach in other academic departments? (n=539)

No

Are some or all of your writing center consultants professional tutors? (n=548)

No

Are some or all of your writing center consultants volunteers? (n=543)

No

Do you have others working as writing consultants? (n=531)

No

During the fall of 2011, what percentage of the writing center consultants were undergraduate students? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=449)

100

During the spring of 2012, what percentage of the writing center consultants were undergraduate students? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=450)

100

How many consultants who worked in the writing center during the fall of 2011 were undergraduate students? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=448)

13

How many consultants who worked in the writing center during the spring of 2012 were undergraduate students? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=449)

14

How are consultants working in the writing center initally trained?

Undergraduate students (n=505)
Full-credit course
Half-credit course
Weekly meetings
Monthly meetings
Workshops before the semesterYes
No training required
OtherYes

What on-going professional development opportunities are offered for consultants working in the writing center?

Undergraduate students (n=461)
Attendance at national conferences
Attendance at regional conferences
Presenting at national conferences
Presenting at regional conferences
Reading professional journalsYes
Outside speakers
Weekly meetings
Semester inservice or workshopYes
Written reflections on daily and/or semester workYes
Meet with directorYes
No opportunities available
OtherYes

How are consultants working in the writing center compensated?

Undergraduate students (n=509)
Hourly wageYes
Stipend
Tuition waver
Course credit
Faculty salary
Release time
Other

Writing centers--Course-based Peer Tutoring

Does your institution have a writing fellows (course-based peer tutoring) program? (n=577)

Yes

How old is the writing fellows program? (n=144)

1-2 years

How is the writing fellows program funded? (n=144)

Separate budget

Do the writing fellows work both as fellows and in the writing center? (n=145)

Writing fellows and writing center tutors are two separate groups.

If two separate groups, how are they staffed? (n=47)

Other

Do the writing fellows regularly attend the class they are assigned to work with? (n=142)

Yes

On average, how many students does each writing fellow work with for a course? (n=131)

12

How are the writing fellows compensated? (n=144)

Other

Administrative structures

Who has primary responsibility for administering first-year writing requirement? (n=565)

Director of writing program/chair of writing department

Are there others who help to administer the FYW program? (n=586)

Yes

If others help to administer the FYW program, how many? (n=347)

5+

Who has primary responsibility for administering the writing center? (n=546)

Separate writing center director or coordinator (WCD)

How is the WCD or LCD position classified? (n=410)

NTT-PT