Reading Blog #10

I really liked the way Bergmann started off explaining the Writing Center in this chapter. She focused on the way that Writing Centers are seen as departmentalized with lack of funding, leading the Writing Centers to experiment in new ways so they can remain relevant in an ever-changing academic society. After this the main focus of the chapter she wrote became focused around an idea of “engagement” within the community between Writing Centers and students. She then discusses the different projects that were started throughout the new semester at Purdue under the direction of the new president. The Writing Across the Curriculum assignment was tied to the Writing Center in hopes students would seek out help on the assignment by going to the Writing Center to receive the help they needed. The Writing Center then received a grant to make the place more visible. Bergmann and graduate students sought to make the Writing Center more known to the public. I think the steps that Bergmann took at Purdue University to make her Writing Center more known and visible to the student population is very important. Writing Centers have basically fallen off the radar of most people. Even I was unaware of the services offered by the Writing Center at Salem College. The Writing Center as a Site of Engagement is a step by step process of how the Writing Center became known as a place of engagement and a helping hand on a college campus. By following this model, and gaining some funding from grants and other areas, the Salem College Writing Center can also be a place known to every student around campus.