The Writing Center supports writing across campus in many ways. Click through the options below to see what form of collaboration works for you, your students, and/or your campus group.
The Writing Center offers 10-minute informational visits. Consultants are available to visit a class, meeting, or event and tell participants about the services offered at the Center, how students can schedule appointments, and share our contact information with participants.
Writing Center staff can also visit faculty or departmental meetings to provide information on Writing Center services. These visits can assist instructors in learning more about how we support students and how appointments can benefit their students.
Informational visits are available both in person and via Zoom.
Note: One form must be filled out per class section or meeting. Please do not put multiple sections on one request form.
Requests must be submitted at least 5 business days prior to the requested date of visit.
We are now accepting requests for informational visits and workshops for Fall 2024.
This includes requests for orientations and welcome events.
The Writing Center offers writing-related workshops by request. Previous workshops include citing sources, finding credible resources, writing a literature review, an introduction to graduate-level writing, overviews of APA citation style and of Chicago citation style, and creating an annotated bibliography. We are happy to create and deliver a presentation specific to your students' needs, pending staff availability.
Workshops may also be applicable to non-course groups. If your group or organization thinks that a writing-related workshop would benefit members, please reach out.
Note: One form must be filled out per class section, even if the same workshop is being requested. Please do not put multiple sections on one request form.
Creating workshops takes time and our professional staff is small. When requesting a pre-existing workshop from our list below, please submit requests at least 3 weeks prior to the requested date of visit. When requesting a custom workshop, please submit requests at least 6-8 weeks in advance of the desired presentation date.
We are now accepting requests for informational visits and workshops for Fall 2024.
This includes requests for orientations and welcome events.
At the Writing Center, we strive to meet the needs of each classroom instructor or group seeking our services. We offer both pre-existing and custom workshops to help us meet this goal.
Pre-Existing Workshops
The Writing Center has worked to curate a library of pre-existing workshops we can deliver more quickly for classroom instructors. These workshops are on popular topics that are frequently requested. Here is a list of workshops currently available. The number in parenthesis indicates the approximate length of the individual workshop.
Custom Workshops
The Writing Center may also be able to create a custom workshop for an individual course. Availability depends upon the number and variety of requests received each semester. Because of the small administrative staff at the Writing Center, we may not able to fulfill all requests.
If you are interested in a custom workshop, complete the request form found above on this page. Be as detailed as possible in your description. Then, someone from the Writing Center will contact you to discuss our availability and the details of the request.
Questions can also be directed to the Writing Center via: writingcenter@ou.edu.
The Writing Center creates a variety of resources that are available to both instructors and students. These resources include both text-based handouts and video tutorials.
We welcome instructors to incorporate these materials into their courses. We do ask that any user who alters or edits these materials in any way adhere to Creative Commons license BY-NC-SA.
Downloadable (PDF) resources include:
Head to our YouTube Channel for captioned video content on writing-related topics as well. We have video tutorials on:
Are you requiring your students to visit the Writing Center? Or, are you offering extra credit for students who schedule an appointment?
The Writing Center has created a guide (new for Spring 2024) in order to assist instructors who are considering making required or incentivized visits part of their course curriculum. This guide, "Required and Incentivized Visits for the OU Writing Center: Guidance for Faculty and Instructors," covers recommendations for promoting visits that are useful to students. It also suggests actions to avoid when promoting useful required or incentivized visits.
Below you can also find more information about the Writing Center and a general outline of our policies regarding required or incentivized visits.
Writing Center consultants are trained to work with students across all disciplines, at all academic levels, and at any stage of the writing process. Our consultants work with individual writers and with groups on group assignments.
If you choose to require students to visit the Writing Center as part of an assignment, or offer extra credit to students who visit, we ask that you do a few things to help us prepare and manage the planned influx of appointments:
Below is a statement about the Writing Center that instructors can copy and paste into a current syllabus or add to a course Canvas page.
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Most universities have a writing center, a place for students and staff to meet and talk about writing. The Writing Center here at OU is a resource I encourage you to use. As a writer, you will want to seek feedback from many different readers. The writing consultants at the Writing Center are able to talk with you about your writing--at any stage in the process and for any course you are taking.
You can make an appointment and learn more information about the Writing Center at write.ou.edu.
The OU Writing Center welcomes all writers and does not discriminate on the basis of race, gender identity, religion, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability. We consider difference to be a seed for learning, writing, and a just society.
Help students connect with the OU Writing Center through Canvas by adding a page to each course. It's as easy as 1, 2, 3.
The Writing Enriched Curriculum program (WEC) is a university-sponsored initiative to promote the teaching of writing in all academic disciplines. The WEC project is designed to further the university’s goal, outlined in the 2013-14 Strategic Plan, to “focus on building student and faculty writing and oral communication skills.” In keeping with the AACU’s identification of writing education as a high-impact practice in undergraduate education, WEC offers faculty support for developing writing curricula that can make the teaching of writing a significant part of every major and degree program.
The WEC program is run through the Center for Faculty Excellence.
Support for faculty teaching and writing does not take place through the Writing Center. The Center for Faculty Excellence provides writing support for all areas of faculty writing, including journal articles and book chapters, research and creative activity proposals, and integrating writing into teaching curriculum.
Looking for information on accessibility and disability? Learn more about resources provided for classroom instructors by the Accessibility and Disability Resource Center (ADRC).
