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Analysis of Problem/Plan The writing center is a useful resource on any campus that can aid students of all disciplines and academic levels. Unfortunately, at the University of Central Florida, it doesnt have the reputation it deserves around campus. The reasons for this are numerous, many of which cant be controlled, but there are things the center can do to get its name out on campus, as well inform both students and faculty of how the writing center can help them. The problem I am addressing is how students and faculty perceive the writing center. Not all students know about the writing center, and those that do may have an uninformed understanding of how the center operates. This is because professors or other students may be giving the wrong information; also, the center has a poor website that does little to inform students and faculty of what happens at the writing center. Because of this poor website and misinformation, the center is viewed as a remedial center, or as an editing center where staff proofread and copyedit papers. This is an issue thats been present since the centers inception, and its prevalent among other campuses as well. Its not something thats easy to fix completely; it can only be improved. The writing center used to be located in a trailer, which did not help its image. How many people want to work in a rinky dink trailer, when its surrounded by nice buildings? According to Dr. Mark Hall, the WC director, activity in this location was minimal, and its no wonder as to why. Now, the center has be en relocated to a new and clean location in Colburn Hall. This is great! But its location is very inconspicuous, with little to show for its location. No one actually knows where it is! There are no signs outside or directions located anywhere except on pamphlets and on the website. On the website, a map is provided, but its not on the front page. Writers typically have to wander around the building, know where it is through word of mouth or through the website, or call the front desk asking just where the heck CNH 105 is. This is just one other area where the websites front page can be helpful. As of now, nothing of importance is on the front page. Its a list of esoteric news updates that would only be interesting to a few discourse communities. It does little to catch a visitors attention, such as with photos, and it doesnt provide any noticeable information

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on what the writing center can do to help students. It doesnt cater to a faculty or student audience; it tries to write for both, and in its effort it fails. There has been no effort to update the website as of yet; however, the inclusion of a research student to the writing center for this year promises the coming of some changes in how the writing center operates and presents itself, including an overhaul of the website. Besides the website, Ive mentioned that professors may be giving students little or incorrect information about the writing center. Dr. Hall has attempted to address this issue, but efforts do not usually bear fruit. For example, there is a notorious hospitality professor who requires his/her students to go to the writing center (all the way from the Rosen campus), or they will fail their assignments. This leads to a massive headache for staff as they try to accommodate the entire class in a short amount of time - students who usually have no desire or need for help. Dr. Hall tried to email this professor and explain the problem, but all efforts were futile, as we continue to receive these unwilling students. Professors who require the WC in their assignments seem to have an idea that the WC is a magical place that automatically improves a paper. For some students, this is true. The WC has helped me plenty of times. But forcing students to do something extra isnt always beneficial. As can be seen in the example, professors cant always be persuaded to stray from their current actions; they can be incredibly stubborn. So, what we can do with that in mind is try to better prepare students who have to come to the WC. To an unwilling writer, the very idea that theyre required to go to the WC can induce some heavy eye rolling. Reluctantly, they would go to the website and find the information they would need: location and how to set up an appointment. Heres where we can catch them. The front page of the website can grab their attention and make the WC actually seem interesting. My goal is to change the perception the student may have of the WC, whether it be that of a remedial workshop, a boring, required component of a paper, or a center of wizards who improve a papers grade. I believe a change to the front page of our website can help this. We can make the WC look interesting, helpful, and reasonable in its services. By reasonable, I mean to say that it will be understood that an effort must be made on the part of the writer, to which the WC will reciprocate, and then some. The front page would also have to

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establish ethos: make us as a whole appear credible and knowledgeable in our craft, so that students would trust us. Still, its a delicate balance as we dont want to appear to have the role of the expert. WC consultations are very collaborative, and one side having too much power can lead to a less productive session. Rhetorical velocity is also very important in this project. With the front page being reworked, wed want our rhetoric to go in a specific direction, and hopefully be projected further in other forms of rhetoric. The front page isnt the end of our message. Word of mouth is also very important in how WC information is spread, with students telling friends about us, and professors telling students about us. We would hope that our own rhetoric, when read by someone, would influence how that person speaks to another about the WC and how it functions. The rhetoric of the front page would also point students towards a certain direction; specifically, what we do at the WC and how we do it. To create a better front page, I would work with other staff and administrators of the WC. In our seminar presentations last semester, a group focused on possible changes to the website. I would consult mainly with them, as well as the researcher at the WC and Dr. Hall himself. I would also look at the websites of other WCs for other schools to see what their strengths and weaknesses are, and how our own website could borrow and stray from those example. This project will definitely be a collaborative effort, but I know that this is a change that everyone is in favor of. Its just a matter of getting started. As to what needs to be addressed and changed on the website, Ive included a few screenshots below in which Ill give some specific examples. Heres the first:

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This is the WC websites front page. Theres nothing on here thats particularly eye-catching. Theres no reason for students or faculty to continue to browse, or click any of the items on the menu to the left. Instead, theres a news feed that very few would be interested in, and theres a picture that I personally like, but I dont think is good enough at catching students attention. Also, the location is listed, but there is no map link showing just where Colbourn Hall 105 is. Finally, the Contact us at the right doesnt quite invite students to make an appointment via the phone number provided. I think the front page could be changed to contain a short or bulleted list about what the writing center does, and how it can help students. This could be followed by a link to a more detailed page, as well as a box containing an invitation for students to make an appointment as well as a phone number. This box would be below the about information, encouraging students to read first before seeing the phone number.

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Below is one more example:

This image is harder to see, but that is besides the point. This is the How a Consultation Works page, listed in a menu that pops up when the cursor hovers over the For Students bar in the menu to the left. First off, this page is harder to find than it should be, seeing as how it is information relevant to every single student who wants to come to the WC. What Id like to highlight in this image is how the information is presented. Its not interesting to read; people want to get their questions answered quickly, then get out. Blocks of text dont help that. The information is split up into

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separate blocks that readers click on to expand (theres several more below the one on the bottom in the image). I propose that this page be linked directly on the front page (in nice, big letters), and be presented in FAQ format. That way, students with questions in mind can find a listed question, get the answer quickly, then move on. Its more efficient than having to scan a paragraph. These two example are just a few out of the greater whole. Theres plenty more work to be done on the website, most of which would be done between much of the WC staff. I hope that by sometime next year, spring at the latest, the website will be revamped, in order to give students more relative and correct information on the UCF writing center.