Slow Agency
By Esther Namubiru, Anna Habib, and Weijia Li
E36 Activist Editing with Elizabeth Kleinfeld and Julie Prebel
In part two of the conversation, Elizabeth Kleinfeld and Julie Prebel discuss 'activist editing', the method that they and Sohui Lee used to edit the collection Disruptive stories: Amplifying voices from the writing center margins.
About the authors Elizabeth Kleinfeld teaches rhetoric and writing theory and practice courses in the English department, coordinates the new Disability Studies minor, and directs the Writing Center at Metropolitan State University of Denver. She is writing a memoir about being her husband’s caregiver and working on a scholarly project studying how the sex lives of disabled people are represented in memoirs. She is also a coach for the National Center for Faculty Development and Diversity, an end-of-life doula, and a hospice volunteer.
Julie Prebel teaches courses in rhetorical theory, critical theory, and American cultural studies, and directs the Writing Center at Occidental College. Along with ongoing research in rhet-comp, she is currently working on a manuscript focused on the racialization of sentiment in (seemingly) feminist representations of rights discourse in literature and popular media. She presents her work regularly at national conferences such as IWCA, CCCCs, and the American Studies Association.
E35 Elizabeth Kleinfeld and Julie Prebel on Disruptive Stories
Elizabeth Kleinfeld, Julie Prebel and Sohui Lee are the editors of the new book, Disruptive stories: Amplifying voices from the writing center margins, a collection of essays on challenging writing center narratives. In this episode, Professors Kleinfeld and Prebel explain what the two of them have learned and started applying from the book to question their own assumptions.
Mentioned in the episode:
- Patricia Dunn's "Chapter 4: Revising & Editing Myths, Metaphors, and Multisensory Strategies" in Talking, Sketching, Moving: Multiple Literacies in the Teaching of Writing.
- Karen Moroski-Rigney's "Chapter 9: Crippling Marginality: Disability and Directing a Writing Center" in Disruptive Stories: Amplifying Voices from the Writing Center Margins.
- Episode 19: "Lucie Moussu on Poorly Designed Research Projects"
- Episode 26 "Decolonization and the Writing Center" with Nancy Henaku
About the guests:
Elizabeth Kleinfeld teaches rhetoric and writing theory and practice courses in the English department, coordinates the new Disability Studies minor, and directs the Writing Center at Metropolitan State University of Denver. She is writing a memoir about being her husband’s caregiver and working on a scholarly project studying how the sex lives of disabled people are represented in memoirs. She is also a coach for the National Center for Faculty Development and Diversity, an end-of-life doula, and a hospice volunteer.
Julie Prebel teaches courses in rhetorical theory, critical theory, and American cultural studies, and directs the Writing Center at Occidental College. Along with ongoing research in rhet-comp, she is currently working on a manuscript focused on the racialization of sentiment in (seemingly) feminist representations of rights discourse in literature and popular media. She presents her work regularly at national conferences such as IWCA, CCCCs, and the American Studies Association.
E34 - The Post Pandemic Writing Center with John Katunich and Sarah Rice
- "The Post Pandemic Writing Center:"A Digital Edited Collection (2024)
- WLN journal's Digital Edited Collections
If you enjoyed this episode, you'll also like:
Theme music for Slow Agency was created by Emmanuel Mubiru.
E33 Adapting to Local Contexts: A Conversation with the European Writing Center Association Board Members
In this episode, we chatted with Lawrence Cleary, Elif Demirel, and Franziska Liebetanz, EWCA board members about writing center work in their respective contexts. We hope you'll enjoy it! Make sure to check out a recent feature piece on the 2023 EWCA Summer Institute.
A transcript of this episode is posted on: www.wlnconnect.org
E32 WLN Authors Kerri Rinaldi and Rebecca Spiegel on Disability Justice in the Writing Center
In this episode, Weijia spoke with WLN authors Kerri Rinaldi and Rebecca Spiegel on their article titled Disrupting Habits: Modifying Writing Center Processes In Pursuit of Disability Justice. The article was published in June 2023 special issue on disability justice and anti-able-ism in writing center work. We hope you'll enjoy it!
For a full transcript, go to: www.wlnconnect.org
E31 Unwell Writing Centers with Genie Giaimo
Slow Agency is back with another round of insightful conversations about writing, writing centers, and the people who make them work for students. On this episode, we invited Dr. Genie Giaimo to help us unpack the meaning of an un-well writing center, which she writes about in her book Unwell Writing Centers: Searching for Wellness in Neoliberal Educational Institutions and Beyond. Dr. Giaimo also shared systematic measures that writing center directors can take to ensure that their risk management and emergency plans prepare them for unforeseen crises and go beyond commodified self-care.
For show notes and resources, please go to: www.wlnconnect.org
E30 Best of Slow Agency Teaching and Researching Writing in the Middle East
Here's one of our favorite conversations from the past. We hope you'll like it!
For show notes and resources, go to: www.wlnjournal.org/blog
E29 Best of Slow Agency Writing Centers in Latin America
Here's one of our favorite conversations from the past. We hope you'll like it!
For show notes and resources, go to: www.wlnjournal.org/blog
E28 Best of Slow Agency Noreen Lape on Internationalizing the Writing Center
Here's one of our favorite conversations from the past. We hope you'll like it!
For show notes and resources, go to: www.wlnjournal.org/blog
E27 Best of Bob Yagelski on Writing as a Way of Being
We're bringing back a few of our favorite conversations this summer. We hope you'll enjoy them!
For show notes and resources, go to: www.wlnjournal.org/blog
E26 Decolonization and the Writing Center
What does it mean to decolonize? Listen to this episode featuring Dr. Nancy Henaku who helps us unpack terms such as decolonization and transnationalism with a nuanced perspective. As Nancy said, these are big and complex ideas that are not easy to parse out. We hope Nancy's words encourage you to contemplate these topics in your own contexts. For show notes and a transcript of this episode, visit: wlnjournal.org/blog
E25 A Conversation on Emotions and Affect in Writing Centers
In this episode, we interviewed Drs. Janine Morris and Kelly Concannon, co-editors for the edited collection Emotions and Affect in Writing Centers. They helped us understand the role of emotions and affect in writing center work and highlighted a variety of contributions in the book. We hope you enjoy it!
For resources and a transcript of this episode, go to: wlnjournal.org/blog
E24 Does ChatGPT Pose an Existential Threat to Writing Centers?
This episode is based on Dear CWCAB, February 2023: Thoughts on ChatGPT.
For a transcript of this episode, go to: www.wlnjournal.org/blog
E23 - Teaching and Researching Writing in the Middle East
In this episode, we discussed the complexity, constraints, and richness of the writing studies work happening in the Middle East and North African region with three wonderful guests: Dr. Emma Moghabghab, Sahar Mari, and Dr. Rachel Buck.
For show notes and resources, visit: wlnjournal.org/blog
E22 - WLN Author Kara Wittman on the Writing Center is Not a Place
In this episode, Editor-in-Chief Anna Habib spoke to Kara Wittman who represented her co-authors Jenny Thomas and Ashlee Moreno on their article The Writing Center is Not a Place from the December 2022 issue of WLN: A Journal of Writing Center Scholarship. We hope you enjoy it! And don't forget to check out our interview with Sarah Rice on her Tutor's Column article titled Navigating the "New Normal" with Abnormal Discourse also from the December 2022 issue.
For show notes and transcript, visit www.wlnjournal.org
E21 - WLN Author Sarah Rice on Navigating the "New Normal" with Abnormal Discourse
In this episode, Weijia Li, Assistant Editor of the blog chatted with Sarah Rice, Writing Tutor from Dickinson College about Sarah's Tutor's Column article titled Navigating the "New Normal" with Abnormal Discourse from the December 2022 issue of WLN: A Journal of Writing Center Scholarship. We hope you enjoy it! Also don't forget to check out our interview with Kara Wittman on her co-authored article titled The Writing Center is Not a Place also from the December 202 issue.
For show notes and transcript, visit www.wlnjournal.org
Episode 20 - Implementing Antiracist Practices in Writing Centers, A Dear CWCAB Episode
In this episode, Graham Stowe answers a question from a Slow Agency listener: I have a question that I was hoping to get some guidance on: as a lecturer, I find it easier to implement antiracist writing practices (e.g., being accepting of all language varieties) than I do in the writing center. Mainly, I find it hard to be open when other instructors might not be. Do you all have some actionable steps I can take to make this much less of an issue?
For show notes and resources, go to: wlnjournal.org/blog
Episode 19 - WLN Author Lucie Moussu on Failure and Research
In this episode, Esther Namubiru, Slow Agency host and production genie, spoke with Dr. Lucie Moussu, Writing Center Director at the Royal Military College in Kingston, Ontaria, Cananda on her recent article titled The Ultimate Guide to Poorly Designed Research Projects, published on the September 2022 issue of WLN: A Journal of Writing Center Scholarship.
For transcript and resources, go to: wlnjournal.org/blog
Episode 18 – Context and Collaboration in the Sub-Saharan Writing Center Community
In this episode, we invited Lillian Lyavaala (Uganda Christian University, Uganda), Rose Richards (Stellenbosch University, South Africa), and Tom Deans (University of Connecticut, USA) for a roundtable discussion on the state and trends of writing centers in Sub-Saharan Africa. We hope you'll enjoy it!
For transcript and resources, go to: wlnjournal.org/blog
Episode 17 - Dear CWCAB on Innovating Writing Centers to Expand WC
In this episode, let's hear from guest host Graham Stowe on ways to move forward in writing center work. This espiode was based on the September 2022 release of Dear CWCAB.
For resources mentioned in the show, go to: wlnjournal.org/blog
Episode 16 - Write to Remember August 4th
We start Season 4 of Slow Agency with the team of Write to Remember August 4th from Lebanon. August 4th, 2020 was the day when a large amount of ammonium nitrate exploded at the Port of Beirut, the capital city of Lebanon. In this episode, organizers, Paula Habre, Serine Jaafar, Hala Daouk, and Anita Moutchoyan, and two of the participants, Aya Taher and Reve Amaneddine, shared their experiences and reflections about the Write to Remember August 4th project.
For show notes and resources, go to: wlnjournal.org/blog
Episode 15 - Dear CWCAB on WAC/WID
Episode Summary:
Slow Agency brings you this special episode where colleagues Stacia Morosky-Rigney and Graham Stowe share the practical writing center advice they give the CWCAB blog readers in their blog series “Dear CWCAB”. Today’s episode is based on the May 2022 DearCWCAB article. The article was responding to a question about WAC and WID. Stacia explains WAC and WID before giving 5 tips:
- Tip 1: train your tutors to ask questions when they do not understand the expectations and conventions of their writer’s disciplines.
- Tip 2: encourage your tutors to have confidence that they can help.
- Tip 3: don’t reinvent the wheel.
- Tip 4: market to the disciplines.
- Tip 5: partner with faculty and staff across disciplines.
Episode Show Notes:
- WAC Clearing House
- March 2022 Dear CWCAB
- April 2022 Dear CWCAB
- May 2022 Dear CWCAB > episode is based on this
- “Step to the Beat” by Podcast.co
- Slow Agency Theme Song by Emmanuel Mubiru
For more information about Dear CWCAB, visit wlnjournal.org/blog. If you have a question you would like Stacia and Graham to answer, please email us.
Episode 14 - Susan Lawrence and Terry Zawacki on Approaches to Supporting Graduate Students in the Writing Center
We talked to Drs. Susan Lawrence and Terry Myers Zawacki about their edited collection Re/writing the Center: Approaches to Supporting Graduate Students in the Writing Center, published by Utah State University Press in 2019. In our conversation, Susan and Terry highlighted some of the chapters in the edited collection and helped us rethink what it's like to write at the graduate level and how to support graduate student writers in the writing center. We hope you'll enjoy it!
For resources mentioned in this show, go to: www.wlnjournal.org/blog
Episode 13 - Joe Essid and Brian McTague on Change in the Writing Center
In October 2021, we interviewed Joe Essid and Brian McTague on the edited collection Writing Centers at the Center of Change, published by Routledge in September 2021. Our conversation focused on change in the context of writing centers and what that means for writing center professionals. We hope you'll enjoy it!
Find resources mentioned in this episode at www.wlnjournal.org/blog
Episode 12 - Noreen Lape on Internationalizing the Writing Center
We spoke with Dr. Noreen Lape in September 2021 about her book Internationalizing the Writing Center: Developing a Multilingual Writing Center, published by Parlor Press in 2020. Lape is Associate Provost of Academic Affairs and directs the Writing Program/Norman M. Eberly Multilingual Writing Center at Dickinson College, which offers writing tutoring in eleven languages.
Find resources mentioned in this episode at www.wlnjournal.org/blog
Episode 11 - Violeta Molina-Natera on Writing Centers in Latin America
We chatted with Dr. Violeta Molina-Natera to learn about writing centers in Latin America. She is the director of Javeriano Writing Center at Pontificia Universidad Javeriana Cali in Colombia, and former president of Latin American Writing Centers and Programs Association. Violeta was one of the featured speakers at the 2021 IWCA conference this October. Her talk titled "Are ʻtheyʻ really writing centers? Entering to a community as outsiders to transform it" is available for view on YouTube.
For resources mentioned in the show, go to: https://wp.me/p3ITl0-2nl
Episode 10 - Jose Lai and Allen Ho on WAC and the Peer Tutoring Scheme at the Chinese University of Hong Kong
We invited Dr. Jose Lai and Dr. Allen Ho, who introduced the Peer Tutoring Scheme as part of their English Across the Curriculum effort at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. For those who are in the process of conceptualizing, starting, or implementing WAC/EAC initiatives in your institution, we hope you find this episode inspiring! To learn more about the Peer Tutoring Scheme, check out our latest global spotlight piece written by Dr. Lai.
For quotes and resources mentioned in this episode, go to: https://wp.me/p3ITl0-2kz
Epiode 9 - Rose Richards on the Writing Center Landscape in South Africa
We chatted with Dr. Rose Richards, Head of the Writing Lab for Stellenbosch University about the writing center landscape in South Africa. In 2011, she co-edited the book Changing Spaces: Writing Centers and Access to Higher Education and co-authored the introduction titled "Writing Centers as Alternate Pedagogical Spaces". She’s also contributed to our blog in 2015. We hope you'll enjoy hearing from our international colleagues. Stay tuned for more next month!
For a complete list of resources mentioned in this episode, go to: https://wp.me/p3ITl0-2lD
(Music “Tom Hop”. Recorded by Podcast.Co from the album Keep Calm and Podcast. Downloaded from https://www.podcast.co/music and https://pod.co/keep-calm-and-podcast)
Episode 8 - Muriel Harris on the WLN Origin and Internationalizing Writing Centers
We are chatting with the founder and editor-in-chief of WLN: A Journal of Writing Center Scholarship and the CWCAB blog. Muriel Harris, or as we affectionately call her ‘Mickey’, is the brains and heart behind the journal and the blog. We are excited to have Mickey tell us about the beginnings of the blog and where she sees the writing center field evolving and internationalizing. We hope you'll enjoy it!
For resources mentioned in this episode, go to: https://wp.me/p3ITl0-2kC
Episode 7 - Bob Yagelski on Writing as a Way of Being
In this episode, we spoke with Bob Yagelski, Director of the Program in Writing and Critical Inquiry and Professor of English Education in the Department of Educational Theory and Practice at the State University of New York, Albany. Our conversation focuses on writing as a way of being and the power of writing in the moment.
We apologize for the sound quality of this episode. For resources and an edited version of this interview, please go to: https://wp.me/p3ITl0-2k8
Episode 6 - Laura Greenfield on Writing Center as a Space of Resistance
In this episode of Slow Agency, we asked Dr. Laura Greenfield to help us understand radicalism in the writing center space and how the writing center can be a space for resisting power, privilege, and standard language ideology. We hope you'll enjoy our conversation!
For more podcast content, follow Slow Agency on Anchor, Apple Podcast, Spotify, and Google Podcasts.
For a complete list of resources mentioned in this episode, visit Connecting Writing Centers Across Borders, a blog of WLN: A Journal of Writing Center Scholarship.
Episode 5 - Elizabeth Kleinfeld on Emotional Labor in the Writing Center
In this episode, we spoke with Dr. Elizabeth Kleinfeld, Professor in the Department of English and director of the writing center at Metropolitan State University of Denver. Our dialog focuses on Elizabeth's recent publication, From Great to Good Enough: Recalibrating expectations as WPA in the edited book titled The Things We carry: Strategies for Recognizing and Negotiating Emotional Labor in Writing Program Administration published by the University Press of Colorado in 2020. Thanks to this conversation for introducing us to Micciche's article and inspiring the title of our podcast.
Click here for a complete list of resources mentioned in the episode.
Episode 4 - A Conversation with Genie Giaimo: On Wellness and Care in the Writing Center
For the third episode of Slow Agency, we talked with Dr. Genie Giamo, Assistant Professor and the Director of the Writing Center at Middlebury College in Vermont and current co-chair of the IWCA Collaborative. Our conversation centers on Genie's editorial work on the most recent WLN Digital Edited Collection titled Wellness and Care in the Writing Center Work. We hope you'll check it out!
Click here for a complete list of resources mentioned in this episode.
Episode 3 - A Conversation with Asao Inoue: Writing Centers and Antiracist Pedadogies
The second half of our conversation with Dr. Asao Inoue centered on Inoue's work on writing centers and antiracist pedadogies. Click here to view a list of resources mentioned in the episode.
Episode 2 - A Conversation with Asao Inoue: Labor-based Contract Grading and the Writing Classroom
In our second episode of Slow Agency, we spoke with Dr. Asao Inoue, Professor and Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, Equity, and Inclusion in the College of Integrative Sciences and Arts at Arizona State University. Our conversation centered on Inoue's work on labor-based contract grading and the writing classroom. Click here to view a list of resources mentioned in the episode.