Current Projects at the Pearce Center -- Spring 2003

Communication Across the Curriculum (CAC) Program
Clemson University's CAC program is dedicated to improving the written, oral, digital, and visual communication skills of Clemson University students, as writing anchors an interactive social process with other forms of communication to promote critical thinking, creativity, collaboration, and problem-solving within and across disciplines.

Scholarship of Teaching and Learning
The Scholarship of teaching and learning committee consisting of, Rob Green from the department of Teacher Education, Jerry Waldvogel from the department of Genetics & Biochemistry, Deborah Switzer from the department of Teacher Education, Jeff Appling from the department of Chemistry, Molly Espey from the department of Applied Economics & Statistics , James Cross from the University Libraries, has been exploring the uses of teamwork and self assessment to increase motivation and exchange.

Poetry Across the Curriculum
Coordinated by Art Young, Patti Connor-Greene, Catherine Paul, and Jerry Waldvogel, the Spring 2004 PAC project was a success with about thirty faculty representing numerous disciplines asking their students to write poetry as part of course requirements. PAC is an ongoing project with the idea not to train students to be poets but rather to provide them with a creative learning and critical thinking opportunity to engage course content and for teachers to use the poems to enhance the classroom as a learning community.

For more information about the PAC project, please contact the Campbell Chair, Art Young (apyoung@clemson.edu). Examples of student poetry from several disciplines are available at http://people.clemson.edu/~apyoung/

The Portfolio Awards are here again. Last spring, the Alumni Association and the Pearce Center teamed up to offer the first annual Digital Portfolio Awards in the categories of Most Creative, Most Original, Most Reflective, and Clemson's Best. To be considered in this university-wide competition, students had to submit their digital portfolios on CD as well as a one-page rationale for their submission to the Pearce Center. The competition was advertised in The Tiger and online. Winners were: Ashley Schuermann for Most Creative, Ashley Schuermann for Most Original, Josh Reynolds for Most Reflective, and Riley Croft for Clemson's Best. Please have students submit their portfolios to the Studio by April 25, 2005.

Workshops on Mind maps
Dr. Summer Smith Taylor and Dr. Kathy Kegley have both led very successful workshops on mind mapping and how to incorporate the benefits of mind mapping into the classroom in multiple diciplines.Mind maps are a visual representation of the knowledge that is based on the associative, "multiple encoding" methods used by the brain. Encoding information as a mid maps offers an effective way to introduce information to short term memory and speed the transition to long-term memory.

Client-Based Program for Business and Technical Writing Classes
This program recently received an award of excellence at the 2004 College Composition and Communication's Conference. Read more about the Client-Based Program on the Advanced Writing Program's web site, and contact Summer Taylor for more information.

The following English classes and clients have been matched for the spring 2005 semester:

PROJECT ONE
Faculty: Wes Rochester
Classes: Two technical writing (TTh 9:30-10:45, 11-12:30)
Client: South Carolina Botanical Garden
Project: Interpretive materials

PROJECT TWO
Faculty: Natalia Muska
Classes: Three technical writing (MWF 8-8:55, 9:05-9:55, 11:15-12:05) and possibly one business writing (TTh 11-12:15)
Client: Blue Ridge Field--Michael Neal and Wilene Cohen
Project: Grant proposals, promotional materials, and other materials to support the project

PROJECT THREE
Faculty: Morgan Gresham
Class: One technical writing (TTh 12:30-1:45)

Client: Clemson University Cooper Library Government Documents--Jan Comfort
Project: Tutorials and promotional materials

PROJECT FOUR
Faculty: Summer Taylor
Classes: One honors technical writing (TTh 12:30-1:45)
Client: Clemson University Environmental Health and Safety Office--Robin Newberry
Project: Environmental Management System plans for campus departments (continues Fall 2004 project)

The Guest Speaker Program for business and technical writing classes, coordinated by Dr. Summer Smith Taylor, continues to expand. In the 2002-2003 academic year, speakers visited more than 36 classes to help motivate students to learn writing skills; even more speakers visited classes in the 2004-2005 academic year. The speakers discussed their first-hand experiences with writing in the workplace and explained the importance of effective writing on the job. The speakers included representatives from Fluor Daniel, Duke Energy, Dunlop/Slazinger, Leslie Advertising, and several consulting firms. If you know a local technical or business professional who might be willing to speak to a writing class, please contact Dr. Summer Smith Taylor at slsmith@clemson.edu or 864-656-6689.