Writing Program Administration

The Writing Program comprises First-Year Writing courses, Advanced Writing in the Disciplines courses, and the Writing Center.

Director of the Writing Program: Mya Poe m.poe@northeastern.edu
Director of the Writing Center: Isabel Sobral Campos i.sobralcampos@northeastern.edu
Director of Advanced Writing: Laurie Nardone l.nardone@northeastern.edu
Director of First-Year Writing: Kelly Garneau k.garneau@northeastern.edu
Director of Multilingual Writing: Qianqian Zhang-Wu qzhangwu@northeastern.edu

Assistant Director to the Writing Program, Cara Marta Messina, messina.c@northeastern.edu
Assistant Director to the Writing Center, Tieanna Graphenreed, graphenreed.t@northeastern.edu

Writing Program Learning Goals

The Writing Program comprises First-Year Writing courses, Advanced Writing in the Disciplines courses, and the Writing Center. The goals below apply to all three sites, but our expectations for how well and to what extent students will accomplish the goals vary in each. You can find the learning goals on the Writing Program website (https://cssh.northeastern.edu/writing/about/learning-goals/)

  1. Students write both to learn and communicate what they learn.
  2. Students negotiate their own writing goals and audience expectations regarding genre, medium, and situation.
  3. Students formulate and articulate a stance through and in their writing.
  4. Students revise their writing using responses from others, including peers, consultants, and teachers.
  5. Students generate and pursue lines of inquiry and search, collect, and select sources appropriate to their writing projects.
  6. Students effectively use and appropriately cite sources in their writing.
  7. Students explore and represent their experiences, perspectives, and ideas in conversation with others.
  8. Students use multiple forms of evidence to support their claims, ideas, and arguments.
  9. Students practice critical reading strategies.
  10. Students provide revision-based response to their peers.
  11. Students reflect on their writing processes and self-assess as writers.

Security and Privacy in Online Learning

The Northeastern writing program strives to maintain your privacy while learning in online environments. For this reason, our instructors use one of Northeastern’s Learning Managements Systems: Canvas and Blackboard.

We also ask that all students in Writing Program classes must use their Northeastern email addresses to receive email from their instructors and to access sites for their writing courses. This policy ensures your emails will not mistakenly end-up in a spam folder and protects you against security attacks.

Minimum Grade Requirement to Pass a Writing Program course

A student must receive a grade of C or better in order to pass a required writing courses in the writing program (C is required for graduation). Any student earning a C- or lower will need to repeat the course in order to fulfill the writing requirement. The instructor makes the final decision with respect to any grade between A and C. Any student receiving lower than a C will be reviewed and signed off on by a committee of 3-6 Writing Program instructors or a writing program director.

If the university allows students to select the pass/fail grading option for writing program courses, students must receive the equivalent of a “pass” to fulfill the writing requirement.

Grade Appeals

Students who wish to appeal final course grades, should follow the policy outlined in the student handbook: http://www.northeastern.edu/osccr/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/2019-2020-UG-Handbook.pdf

Attendance

According to the official Northeastern University Attendance Requirements, students have the right to a limited number of excused absences for conditions, including absences due to specific university-sponsored activities, religious holidays, military deployment, and jury duty.

Writing Program policy requires regular engagement with the class materials and the instructor. This does not change just because we are currently operating online or in a Hybrid NUflex model. In all courses, “attendance” refers to regular, ongoing participation in discussions, weekly posted work, and other assignments. Students must also maintain regular communication with the course instructor. We understand that occasionally access may be limited, but you must stay in contact with your instructor to let them know about any accessibility issues. A student who loses contact with the instructor or loses contact with their peers will not be meeting performance expectations for earning course credit. In that case, the instructor may suggest that the student withdraw from rather than fail the course.

Please note that University Health and Counseling Services will not issue documentation of students’ illnesses or injuries.

Attendance in Hybrid NUflex Class

Hybrid NUflex classes offer a great deal of flexibility because they can be accessed remotely as well as on-ground. Unlike in online classes, however, students enrolled in Hybrid NUflex classes should expect to meet in their scheduled class sequences. Students should expect to spend time on preparation, synchronous class attendance, and assignments.

You may attend a Hybrid NUflex class in person or virtually; your semester may include a combination of these forms of attendance. If you are attending a Hybrid NUflex class virtually, here are some things to do before class begins:

  • To the best of your ability, find a location free from distractions to attend your class.
  • To the best of your ability, ensure that you have adequate internet capacity to complete assigned tasks, download materials, and participate online. If at any time you do not have adequate internet access, let your instructor know. (If you have a temporary technical problem, please call the Help desk at 617-373-4357, or email them at help@northeastern.edu.)
  • Gather materials (headset, pens, paper, textbooks).
  • Login early to test your camera and microphone.
  • Follow the guidelines for online etiquette and participation set by your instructor.
  • Your instructor will let you know whether a class is being recorded. Recording of classes, in whole or in part, is at the discretion of the instructor and with students’ permission.

Late Submissions of Written Work

Unless you have an accommodation provided by the Disability Resource Center that allows you extra time to complete an assignment or have discussed an extension with your instructor, you are expected to submit all materials by the assigned due date.

Academic Integrity

Northeastern University is committed to the principles of intellectual honesty and integrity: the Northeastern Academic Honesty and Integrity Policy may be found at http://www.northeastern.edu/osccr/academic-integrity-policy/.

The Office of Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution (OSSCR) website (http://www.northeastern.edu/osccr/) provides extensive information on student conduct, the disciplinary process, and the range of available sanctions. All members of the Northeastern community are expected to maintain complete honesty in all academic work, presenting only that which is their own work in tests and assignments. In writing program classes, this definition of plagiarism applies not only to borrowing whole documents, but also to borrowing parts of another’s work without proper acknowledgment and proper paraphrasing or quotation. We will discuss effective and responsible use of sources throughout the semester.

Respecting Diversity

Writing program instructors seek to foster inclusive learning environments and cherish our students’ multilingual funds of knowledge. That means, we respect differences in learning as well as cultural differences that arise during classroom interactions. We expect students in writing program classes to respect diverse perspectives.

We respect any privacy concerns students may have, regarding joining classes remotely from overseas, country/region-specific accessibility issues, English language difficulties, and culturally informed genre styles. If you are a multilingual student and have specific concerns and questions, please feel free to contact Professor Qianqian Zhang-Wu, Director of Multilingual Writing, at qzhangwu@northeastern.edu.

Collection of Student Work for Program Assessment

Your instructor may be asked to submit one or more samples of your writing to the Writing Program Assessment Committee for the purpose of program assessment. Student work is randomly selected and used solely for the purpose of program-level assessment. Looking at student writing from a programmatic perspective helps us improve our program. Student writing collected for this purpose is never circulated outside the Writing Program for any reason. While we cannot guarantee that all identifying information will be removed from all materials read by Writing Program evaluators, we report only aggregate data to those outside the program; no teachers or students are identified in these reports. If you have any questions or concerns about our program assessment, feel free to contact Professor Mya Poe, Writing Program Director, at m.poe@northeastern.edu.

Technology Assistance

Canvas is Northeastern University’s Learning Management System (LMS). For technology issues, please call the Northeastern HELP desk (617-373-4357) or email them at help@northeastern.edu. For Canvas Help, click the question mark in the sidebar on Canvas.

COVID-19 UNIVERSITY RESOURCES and POLICIES

Masks and Physical Distancing

Because of the necessary distancing imposed by COVID-19, we will have fewer occasions on campus to create and enjoy in-person spaces for learning and growth. In order for us to preserve the opportunities offered by class meetings, students and instructors in the classroom must at all times follow the mandatory campus protocols for COVID-19 safety, including:

  • Masks must be worn by students and instructors in classrooms and all other buildings;
  • Six feet of distance must be maintained between persons;
  • Students may come to class each week only on the days indicated by their Student Hub plan;
  • Students must adhere to campus self-monitoring and testing protocols and should not come to class if they have any symptoms of illness.

For the sake of all our safety, if you come to class without a mask, I will direct you to the closest building where you can obtain one, after which you may return to class. If you are not able or willing to wear a mask, you may not be present in the classroom. If you come to class on a day on which you are not scheduled to be in the classroom, I will ask you to leave. In the unlikely event that any member of the class is unable or unwilling to comply with these mandatory safety precautions, the class will not be able to take place.