Townsend, who received her law degree from Duke University, now finds herself working at one of the few law schools in the country to require eight legal writing credits for graduation. The College of Law was also the first to feature an in-house writing center available exclusively to its students. She has directed the center since 1990, one year after it opened. Though students are not required to use the center, numbers indicate that staff members keep plenty busy. Numerous other UI departments also actively strive to improve writing.
Accountants have to write clear and accurate reports explaining the results of their analyses.
So the college's Department of Accounting implemented a pilot program in 1995 to improve students' writing. Each year, between two and four Writers' Workshop students are hired to work with faculty members, reviewing assignments in four courses. Their feedback, Lopes says, provides the approximately 150 students with a consistent voice throughout their course work. The idea here is to teach writing in conjunction with the functional area. We want our students to know that writing is not an empty exercise.