The Writing Center

The Writing Center Philosophy

The Writing Center is a friendly place where students may receive help with their writing and know they will be treated with respect and kindness in a non-threatening atmosphere. Students can work on whatā€”for many of themā€”is a difficult, mysterious, and stressful task. We try to demystify the writing process, working with each individual writer who seeks our help to find a way of proceeding that works best for him or her.

Though we work to ensure that all clients leave the Writing Center with a clear idea of what they need to do to improve their paper, we do not feel that this is enough. We are passionately dedicated to the goal of helping our clients become more self-sufficient writers. We want them on their own to put into practice the skills and techniques that they learn in sessions with our writing assistants. No writer is ever entirely self-sufficient -- even the best and most professional writers seek input and advice from others -- but what the best writers do have is the learned ability to serve as their own readers and editors, to question their purpose for writing and their effectiveness in communicating information and ideas. We are always working on ways to help students achieve this sort of independence; to this end, we urge students to make multiple appointments for every writing project and to come to The Writing Center with every writing assignment they receive. Moreover, we try always to be learning ourselves, from our clients, from each other, from faculty across the disciplines, from writers and researchers in the field, and from our own experiences as writers.

The Writing Center is located in the Student Success Center in the L.C. Norton Library

To make an appointment, call 318.487.7160, or go to the Writing Center and sign up in the schedule binder. Walk-ins are welcome if appointments are available.

Contact Information

Dr. Julie Driessen, Professor of English & French
Director of the Writing Center
Division ofĀ Language and Literature
318-487-7445
julie.driessen@lcuniversity.edu

Meet the Writing Center Assistants

Emily Sanders

Senior Writing Assistant

Hi, my name is Emily Sanders. I am the senior writing assistant here on campus, and I am a General English major with a minor in Spanish Language.Ā When I graduate, I plan to pursue a career as a paralegal.

Tarah Elliott

Writing Assistant

Hi! Iā€™m Tarah Elliott, and Iā€™m a junior. Iā€™m majoring in Education with a concentration in English. This is my first semester with the Writing Center, and Iā€™m so excited to be switching over from math tutoring. I prefer grammar to essay writing; I just love the structure and that thereā€™s a right answer! But I love writing too, especially creative writing. I first started tutoring when I was sixteen, and I loved it so much I decided to be a teacher. So come make an appointment with me, and Iā€™ll help you with whatever you need!

Anna Hooker

Writing Assistant

Hi! My name is Anna Hooker, and Iā€™m a junior here at LCU. For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to be a teacher! I am majoring in Secondary Education with a Concentration in English. This is my first semester working in the Writing Center, and I am so honored to have been given this opportunity! I cannot wait to see what this semester has in store. A few interesting things about me are that I love reading and writing, but I also enjoy hunting and fishing in my free time. I am here to help! I know research papers can be scary, but I promise they are not as terrifying as you might think. If you ever need help, please donā€™t hesitate to schedule an appointment with me down in the Writing Center!

What We Do

The Writing Center is a free academic support service sponsored through the Humanities Division that allows students to work one-on-one with trained assistants on any aspect of their writing project. Most of our clients are students who are working on class assignments. We generally help students:

  • grasp the assignment and what it requires of them
  • understand how their own writing is and isnā€˜t working
  • learn strategies for writing tasks (how to brainstorm, organize, etc.
  • practice the art of revision in both re-seeing and rewriting

Our approach to assisting, then, is first and last to ask questions and help student writers to discover their own purpose for writing and means by which this purpose can be best achieved. In the best case, this process becomes a habit of mind which students subsequently practice on their own. We aim at rendering ourselves unnecessary to the student in the future when he or she acquires the habits of being able to think through a topic, organize ideas, anticipate and counter objections or questions, illustrate by data or example, check and repair sentences and so on. To that end, we strongly urge students to make multiple appointments for each writing assignment they bring to us. A single visit is of much less value in the long term than multiple visits.

If there exists a misconception about The Writing Center, it is that it functions primarily a proofreading service, that we provide a sort of one-hour martinizing to "clean up" student papers. That is not what we do. Everything we do is aimed at empowering the student writer to write effectively without our intervention, and proofreading studentsā€˜ papers for them would be counter to this aim. In view of our limited time and resources, we try to concentrate efforts where they will do the most long-term good. For example, we would ask, ā€œHow can you make this paragraph more coherent or persuasive?ā€ as opposed to ā€œWhich pronoun case is used before a gerund?ā€ This does not mean that we do not address grammar and punctuation problems, because we do. We work with students to help them recognize and correct their errors and patterns of error as well as introducing them to useful proofreading techniques.

Writing Center

writing center hours

Appointments: Call (318) 487-7160, email writing.center@lcuniversity.edu, or go to the Writing Center to sign up in the schedule binder. Walk-ins are welcome, if appointments are available.

Location: Student Success Center in the LCU Norton Library (ground floor)

M: 8 am -Ā  12 pm, 6 pm - 8 pm

T: 9:30 am - 11 am, 12 pm - 2 pm

W: 10 am - 12 pm, 6 pm - 8 pm

TH: 9:30 am - 2 pm, 6 pm - 7 pm

F: 8 am - 12 pm

Online Writing Center

No appointment needed, Available to All LCU Students

Available after hours and weekends

For online writing assistance, visit the chat room during the hours listed below:
Sundays: 3 pm - 6 pm