Professional Writing Coordinator

Selection Process: Appointed by the Chair upon recommendation of the Steering Committee.
Term of Office:  Three-year renewable term.

Description:

The Professional Writing Coordinator performs administrative duties related to maintaining and improving the professional writing track of the undergraduate English major at UNCW. This individual serves as the main contact person for questions about and issues related to the Professional Writing track in the major and the Certificate in Professional Writing for the university and external communities.  In order to provide the Professional Writing Coordinator with adequate time to fulfill administrative duties, the individual holding this position receives one course release per semester.

Responsibilities:

Departmental advising and curriculum management:

• Recommends professional writing course offerings and advises Chair on hiring of full- and part-time faculty to teach those courses each semester.
• Chairs the Professional Writing committee.  
• Coordinates and ensures the inclusion of applied learning opportunities in coursework, internships, and outreach.
• Facilitates solutions to technology problems in MO 204, our networked classroom.
• Leads the department in making additional hires in professional writing at the tenure-track and lecturer levels.
• Manages all proposals and requests for curriculum changes that pertain to the option and/or certificate in professional writing.
• Tracks course enrollment to plan for future needs of the program.

Program and student learning outcomes assessment:

• Oversees collection of program assessment data for use in the departmental assessment report. Drafts the professional writing program’s portion of the departmental assessment report.
• Develops and administers the electronic portfolio outcomes assessment system for English majors in the Professional Writing track.
• Trains all faculty and part-time instructors who teach English 204, 496, and other Professional Writing courses in how to use the electronic portfolio system, teach their students about it, and incorporate it into their courses. Visits classes and meets individually with students to ensure that all senior seminar students successfully complete the portfolio.
• Trains and oversees committee members who assess outcomes for the program using the electronic portfolios. Compiles data and creates reports to ensure that outcomes are being met and appropriate curricular adjustments are made to ensure improvement in student learning outcomes.

Student advising and audits:

• Advises prospective applicants to the program by telephone, email, and face-to-face meetings.
• Provides supplemental advising for current Professional Writing students about course selection, degree program planning, and professional goals.  
• processes course substitution requests for current Professional Writing students about course selection, degree program planning, and professional goals.
• Audits requirements for students receiving the Certificate in Professional Writing prior to graduation each semester.
• Recruits and advises students, handles paperwork, attends meetings, and helps coordinate the department’s fledgling student chapter of the Society for Technical Communication.

Communication and outreach:

• Distributes Certificates during the departmental graduation ceremony and throughout the year for those students who do not attend graduation.
• Applies for university grants needed to assess, upgrade, and acquire technology for the program.
• Maintains and revises the professional writing portion of the English Department website.
• Communicates with alumni and assists them in their search for employment and with questions once they begin working.
• Maintains, adds new members to, and prompts discussion on profwritingalum@lists.uncw.edu, a discussion list for alumni of the Professional Writing Program.
• Creates and maintains a database of all Professional Writing students to improve communication with students, enhance our ability to compile statistics, and streamline the tracking of Certificate completion.
• Creates and maintains a wiki where faculty and part-time instructors who teach Professional Writing courses may exchange ideas and share
• Develops a clear vision for graduate coursework in Professional Writing within the English Department.