The Old Westbury Writing Center
Room L-300, Library, Campus Center
(516) 876-3093
The Writing Center offers free writing assistance and free non-credit writing workshops for Old Westbury students, faculty, staff, and alumni.
Hours
The Center is open during the Fall and Spring semesters on the following days:
| MONDAYS |
11am - 9:30pm |
| TUESDAYS |
11am - 9:30pm |
| WEDNESDAYS |
10am - 7pm |
| THURSDAYS |
10am - 7pm |
Please see our door for specific information on opening and closing dates for each semester. The Writing Center is closed on days when classes are not in session, including school holidays, school breaks, and closings due to inclement weather.
Walk-ins are welcome and will be accommodated whenever a consultant is available. Students can also make advanced appointments through the link below. Advanced appointments are especially recommended during our busiest periods: midterm weeks and the final three weeks of the semester.
To make an appointment for a Writing consultation, click on the following website.
oldwestbury.mywconline.com
If it is your first time using our online appointment system, you will need to fill out and submit a brief registration form. Then, you will be able to log in using your email address and the password you chose. Click on a white space to access an appointment form for the day and time you choose. Fill out the appointment form and click "save registration" to make an appointment. Please cancel your appointment if you cannot come by deleting your appointment on the schedule.
Our Mission
As part of the educational mission of the college, the Old Westbury Writing Center helps students become more effective and confident writers. We assist students in developing critical thinking and writing skills important for their college careers and beyond. In individual writing conferences, we engage writers in conversation about their ideas and drafts and offer strategies to help them consider options and make effective rhetorical decisions. We help with writing for any course or academic occasion and welcome students from all disciplines and academic levels.
Our Philosophy
Several beliefs about writing and learning shape our mission and practice.
We believe that
- all writers benefit from sharing their ideas and drafts with readers
- writers learn best when they take ownership of and responsibility for their writing
- writing is a method both of communicating ideas and of discovering them
- writers and their writing benefit from attention to higher-order concerns like audience, ideas, argumentation, and organization before tackling lower-order concerns such as syntax or spelling.
- writers benefit from individualized responses tailored to their particular strengths and areas of concern
- writing improvement requires time, effort, and thought
For Students
The Writing Center is a place for all writers: for students who love writing and feel it is a strength, for writers who have specific areas of concern they would like to address, for ESL writers, for returning students - in short, for everyone. The Writing Center offers two primary services for students: individual consultations and workshops.
What students are saying about the Writing Center
"[My consultant] made me do the work and helped me gain confidence as a writer."
"I feel that the Writing Center has helped me become a better writer."
Individual consultations
The Writing Center offers one-to-one conferences with writing consultants on a drop-in or appointment basis. Sessions usually last either 25 or 50 minutes. We work with students at all levels and on any college assignment or academic task (such as applications for internships or personal statements for graduate school).
Please keep in mind that there is no "quick fix" for writing improvement. Successful writing takes time, effort, and thought. In a session, we will talk with you about your ideas and drafts and offer strategies to help you consider your options and make effective changes to your writing on your own. In each session, our goal is to help you learn one or two main things related to writing.
We can assist you with all aspects of the writing process including:
- understanding assignments
- generating ideas
- developing thesis statements
- organizing an essay
- using sources effectively
- forming coherent paragraphs
- developing topic sentences and transitions
- communicating clearly at the sentence level
- using punctuation effectively
We cannot
- write the paper for you
- edit or proofread the paper for you
If sentence-level issues are a concern, we will be happy to help you identify patterns of error in your writing and begin correcting them and to help you learn strategies for effective proofreading. Like any aspect of writing, improvement at the sentence level takes time and requires continuing effort.
Please bring your assignment sheet along with your ideas, notes, and drafts and come prepared to talk about your writing.
Click here to view our schedule or to make an appointment:
oldwestbury.mywconline.com
Workshops
The Writing Center offers free, non-credit workshops on specific topics related to writing. Registration is required. Call the Writing Center at (516) 876-3093 or stop by room L-300 in the Library to register. These workshops offer a brief overview of specific topics and do not replace a course in ESOL or composition.
Writing Links
Purdue University Online Writing Lab
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/
University of Wisconsin-Madison Writing Handbook
http://www.wisc.edu/writing/Handbook/index.html
CUNY WriteSite
http://writesite.cuny.edu/
University of North Carolina Writing Handouts
http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/index.html
Ann Raimes, Keys for Writers:
http://college.hmco.com/english/raimes/keys_writers/5e/student_home.html
Diana Hacker, A Writer's Reference
http://bcs.bedfordstmartins.com/writersref6e/Player/Pages/Main.aspx
Online Dictionaries
Your Dictionary.com: http://www.yourdictionary.com/
Merriam-Webster Online: http://www.merriam-webster.com/home.htm
Links for ESL Writers
Activities for ESL students: http://a4esl.org/
Ohio University Department of Linguistics: http://www.ohiou.edu/linguistics/esl/
For Faculty
Please help us spread the word about the Writing Center to your students:
- Consider providing information about the Writing Center on your syllabi and/or assignment sheets. Below is a short description of the Center that can be used or customized:
The Writing Center, located in room L-300 in the Library, offers free writing assistance to Old Westbury students. The Center is open Mondays and Tuesdays from 12-9:30pm and Wednesdays and Thursdays from 10am - 7pm. Please bring your assignment sheet and your ideas, or drafts, and come prepared to talk about your writing.
- Peer tutors are available at many times during the day to do brief 5-10 minute presentations about the Writing Center for your classes. Students may feel more comfortable using the Center's services if they have seen a presentation by a peer.
- Flyers are available with information about the Center to distribute to students.
Contact the Writing Center Director at cardinalj@oldwestbury.edu to request a class presentation or flyers for your students.
Links for Faculty
Writing Across the Curriculum: WAC Clearinghouse
http://wac.colostate.edu/index.cfm
University of Wisconsin Writing Across the Curriculum Website
http://mendota.english.wisc.edu/~WAC/
National Council of Teachers of English
http://www.ncte.org/
NCTE Beliefs about the Teaching of Writing
http://www.ncte.org/about/over/positions/category/write/118876.htm
Conference on College Composition and Communication
http://www.ncte.org/cccc/
International Writing Centers Association
http://writingcenters.org/index.php
For Tutors
Links for tutors
The Writing Lab Newsletter
http://www.writinglabnewsletter.org/
The Dangling Modifier: An International Newsletter by and for Tutors of Writing
http://www.ulc.psu.edu/Dangling_Modifier/index.php
PeerCentered: A Writing Center blog
http://bessie.englab.slcc.edu/pc/
Praxis: A Writing Center Journal
http://projects.uwc.utexas.edu/praxis/
International Writing Centers Association
http://writingcenters.org/index.php
National Conference on Peer Tutoring in Writing
http://www.wc.iup.edu/ncptw/
Applying for a position as a Writing Consultant:
The Writing Center employs highly-motivated sophomores, juniors and seniors who
- enjoy writing and have strong writing skills
- work well with their peers
- are reliable and responsible
- are interested in a learning experience that will enrich their education
Writing Consultant Responsibilities:
- work a minimum of 2 hours per week in a regular shift or shifts each semester
- talk with students about their ideas and drafts and provide strategies for effective writing
- participate in required orientation, staff meetings, and professional development activities
- be eager to continue growing and developing as a consultant
- be punctual and reliable in fulfilling shifts
Benefits of Writing Center Consulting
- Consulting offers students an opportunity to develop leadership, communication, interpersonal, and critical thinking skills.
- Consultants gain experience in real pedagogical situations.
- Consultants often report that their own writing improves.
- Consultants receive an hourly salary.
Interested in applying for a Writing Center position?
Contact the Director, Dr. Jody Cardinal, by phone (516-876-3093), email (cardinalj@oldwestbury.edu) or in person in the Writing Center for more information about the application process and deadlines.
