17 In/Visible Leadership

I used to watch “Wife Swap,” a show that follows two families that exchange wives for two weeks (I will deny this fact later). Producers created unlikely pairings: a buttoned-up bible-belt family meets a foul-mouthed Harley riding wife, for instance. Could the biker mom actually lead the church-goers? Would she have to buy her new family’s loyalty with fluffy Jell-O salad?

Stay with me.  This connects with leadership.

I, too, traded spouses in 2011 when I left the Writing Center to chair the English department. It is a cliché, of course, to talk about being married to one’s work. But from 2000-2011, my better half was the Writing Center. I directed Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC) as well from 2000-2005, and again in 2015-16 (Interim). I will direct WAC again starting fall 2017 to guide the program through General Education revision. My leadership has always been visible within the Writing Program, but my contributions to the English department, and to our campus as a whole on issues related to supporting diverse students, may be less well known. I focus on these three areas—Writing Program, English department, and multilingual students—below, offering selected examples of the effects of my leadership.

The Writing Program: WC and WAC

Developing a Robust Training Program for Tutors: As Writing Center Director from 2000-2011, I helped tutors professionally and intellectually by designing and leading pre- semester workshops annually. The workshops fostered community, developed tutors’ critical reading skills, and modeled tutoring strategies. I led weekly staff meetings and compiled a comprehensive training manual; students read and discussed composition scholarship, and helped one another navigate their trickiest clients. Those training materials continue to influence our Center.

Providing Tutors with Specialized Knowledge and Administrative Experience: I developed teams of tutors to tackle pressing challenges. An Outreach Team developed workshops for specific populations of students, including those with disabilities, first- year writers, international students, and medical school applicants; Designated Tutor team members paired with WRITI and WRITD instructors to provide services tailored to each instructor’s needs. An Administrative Team assisted with record-keeping, assessment, and scheduling. Each Team Leader gained supervisory experience and collaborated with me to hire and train new tutors annually.

Creating a Supportive Space for Diverse Writers: My staff and I studied literacy practices and race, culture, and ethnicity, and we considered learning disabilities and their effects on written communication. We offered workshops for international students focused on—and critiquing—the western rhetorical tradition. We collaborated with the Diversity Center and the Academic Support Center to ensure that tutoring spaces were welcoming, and I recruited students of color and multilingual students as Writing Center staff members. In spring 2006, all WC staff members took the IDI (Intercultural Development Inventory) and discussed issues of privilege with Virgil Jones. This informed much of our work from 2006-2011.

Creating Workshops and Faculty Development Materials: As director of either WAC or the WC, I developed and led countless workshops and produced handouts and web pages to support faculty on topics ranging from the practical (“How to Handle the Paper Load”) to the philosophical (“What Makes a W?”). I also partnered with the Kendall Center to support faculty.  For instance, in 2009 I developed and facilitated two summer workshops, “Writing and Oral Communication for Today’s Student” with Mariangela Maguire and “Writing About Teaching” with Margaret Bloch-Qazi, as well as two three- hour WAC workshops in 2015-16. I have led sessions at most FTS summer workshops since 2000 and facilitated numerous Teachers Talking sessions.

Consulting, Faculty Governance and Committee Work: I still consult individually with many colleagues. After 2005, I advised all subsequent WAC directors and served on WPAC as needed. I co-authored the Writing Program Strategic Plan with Jeanne Herman (2008-09) and assisted her with WRITD assessment (2010-11). While directing the WC and/ or WAC, I served on Curriculum Committee, CAP-SUB, GEN-SUB, First Term Seminar Advisory Board, Writing Program Advisory Committee (WPAC), and various planning groups for the Academic Support Center. Even as an interim ex-officio Curriculum Committee member in 2015-16, I joined a subcommittee that met weekly with Chair Tom LoFaro to explore General Education revision models. I am currently a voting member of Curriculum Committee (2016-19). Last week, I attended the Conference on the First Year Experience at the Provost’s invitation, so that I could make recommendations regarding writing instruction for future FY seminars.

ENG Chair, 2011-2014: I chaired our English department at nearly full strength—twelve colleagues to schedule, mentor, support, and/ or evaluate—yet we anticipated retirements from nearly half. I helped prepare us for those retirements and the curricular changes that would follow by leading conversations about curriculum and staffing and collecting data on ENG alumni. I also chaired three searches, one tenure track and two NTT; planned and led three annual department retreats; proposed the Humanities Resource Center and helped to design and furnish the space. As a Chair, I wanted to keep my colleagues talking to one another, and I planned events ranging from readings to retirement dinners. I also was instrumental in developing a Handbook for English Majors prior to becoming chair (sadly, we no longer use it).EDU liaison, 2000-2011:  I advised CALT (Communication Arts and Literature Teaching) majors, observing and evaluating student teachers in the public schools, helping them negotiate with cooperating teachers, writing letters of recommendation, and keeping my ENG colleagues apprised of all state level licensure changes. I also surveyed CALT alumni about the courses they taught most frequently, using that data to inform curricular shifts. I developed pedagogy courses such as ENG 247: Teaching Writing, Theory and Practice and ENG 237: Adolescent Literature and Literacy. In some ways, though, my mentoring was most valuable: I continue to trade assignment suggestions, teaching stories, and advice with our CALT alumni long after they leave Gustavus.

Diversity Initiatives and Multilingual Learners

Advocating for Students and Ensuring Support: From 2000-2007, I co-hosted annual sessions for international students with Jeff Anderson and Jane Lalim. In 2006, I conducted the College’s first ELL assessment, and then brought St. Olaf’s ELL specialist to campus to meet with faculty and tutors. I worked with Julie Johnson and Dean Maguire to create an ELL specialist position in partnership with Minnesota State’s TESOL program. We then wrote the position description and hired the first two GTAs, who reported to the Writing Center. I recruited Andrew Grace, who expanded the position in 2010. Andrew developed the Summer Institute for Academic Success (SIAS), and we consulted frequently. Subsequently, I have participated informally in several searches for that expanded position. I received the Faculty Diversity Leadership Award (Mark Anderson Award) from the Office of Multicultural Programs and Diversity Leadership Council in 2009.

Committee Work: In 2008-09, I was appointed to the Commission Gustavus 150 Taskforce on Global and Multicultural Initiatives.  I served on the ELL Action Committee from 2009-2011, co-chairing the committee with Sidonia Alenuma-Nimoh in 2010-11 and researching best practices in ESL support at other small colleges. Our recommendations helped to make SIAS and Why Multi Matters possible. I was a member of the search committee for the Assistant Director of the Diversity Center in 2014 and have represented the interests of multilingual students as a member of FTS Advisory Board.

Teaching and Mentoring Students: I teach Why Multi Matters regularly.  I organize annual reunions for each of my classes; I advise and mentor all “alumni” once they finish FTS, often for all four years at Gustavus.  In 2016, Thia Cooper and I hosted a celebration graduation dinner for that first class of 2012, inviting all the subsequent classes. The Summer Institute for Academic Success (SIAS) brings multilingual students to campus for a bridge program each August. I typically provide sessions on writing. I have participated formally in Mentoring for Student Success multiple times (and under various program names) as well.

Faculty Development: In 2013, four faculty members from across the disciplines participated in a rubric-based assessment of the Why Multi Matters portfolios. The results have fueled multiple faculty development opportunities. Most notably, I presented a full day workshop for Gustavus faculty in January, 2014. In this workshop I introduced faculty to the wide variety of multilingual students on our campus, shared data from the pilot SoTL, and modeled ways to read and respond to the writing of multilingual students.