How did you come up with the idea for the Spanish Writing Center?
 
        It actually wasn't an original idea, but in languages it was pretty novel I guess. I was abroad my sophomore year, in Madrid, where my friends and I found ourselves constantly reviewing and critiquing each other's papers. Most of us had had experience with the (English) Writing Center on the SLU campus, one of my friends having worked there as a tutor, so we aimed to employ the same constructive techniques in our own informal approach to writing pedagogy. We got a lot out of it and I began to wonder what would be available for us to continue growing once we returned to campus the following fall. So I contacted my advisor (and idol!) Dr. Steven White about whether or not a writing center for Spanish existed on campus, because as of yet I had not heard of one. His reply was something like "No, but when you come back you can start one!" As you can see, that's just what I did.

How did you start it up?

        I spent the fall of my junior year researching the implementation of a writing center, talking with Richard Jenseth and Mary Barkley (then director of the Writing Center), who provided me with a model. I talked with the director of peer tutoring and the director of Multicultural Education, Eve Stoddard. All these people gave great support, either philosophical, pedagogical, practical and/or financial. It was really vindicating for me to have my idea received with such enthusiasm.

When did everything finally come together?

By the end of fall term, I had a proposal for the SWC, including where the funding was going to come from and how we were going to obtain materials (a computer and printer were donated and I purchased books and other items gradually). The proposal was accepted, the professors and I screened and hired tutors and we had our first session in the spring. Eventually, due to the success of the SWC and an apparent desire for language tutoring, we branched out and expande our offerings. We really felt like we were making a difference in the Spanish program and hoped to influence other language departments to look into developing their own writing centers, but as far as I know, this has not happened.

In the 2003/2004 school year, the Spanish Writing Center held 274 tutorials, a number which has continued to grow over the years since 1998.

Thank you, Mark!