Academic Task Force -
Baccalaureate Writing Initiative
Revised Recommendations
(Feb. 10, 2006)
Mission
To provide world-class, comprehensive writing instruction throughout the undergraduate years, with a goal of ensuring that every undergraduate upon graduation can write sustained, analytical papers with clarity, coherence, and grace in the context of his or her major area of study.
Deliverables
- Recommendations regarding how to create a research-based model with one mission and central direction to establish the University of Minnesota as a national leader in undergraduate writing in all of its forms, including freshman writing, technical writing, writing across the curriculum, senior writing projects, and tutoring.
- Recommendations regarding a plan to ensure that the importance of writing and opportunities for written communication are emphasized across the University and are integrated into undergraduate education across disciplines, programs of study.
- Recommendations on how to design, organize, and structure a campus-based writing program that leads and coordinates writing across colleges and departments.
- Recommendations for creating a clear set of expectations for proficiency and assessments in writing, across all colleges, for undergraduates at various stages of their education.
- Recommendations regarding the structure of writing intensive requirements, expectations for writing intensive courses, and appropriate levels of support.
- Recommendations to clarify the relation between writing intensive courses and other courses and assignments (e.g. senior design projects or papers) that involve significant writing.
- Recommendations regarding the organization of the freshman writing curriculum, other writing courses (such as technical writing) and how to encourage the widespread involvement of the faculty in writing instruction.
- Recommendations regarding the leveraging of resources across academic units to support the writing initiative.
Report due: December 10, 2005
 Task force charge letter from E. Thomas Sullivan, Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost
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Task Force Cochairs
- Donald Ross, Jr. Professor and Director, Composition Program English, Lang/Lit, CLA
- Laura Gurak, Professor and Head, Rhetoric, COAFES
Task Force Members
Neil O. Anderson
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Associate Professor, Horticultural Science, COAFES |
Patricia Hampl
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Regents Professor, English, Lang/Lit, CLA |
Kirsten Jamsen
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Director, Center for Writing, CLA |
Lesley Lydell
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Graduate student, Curriculum & Instruction, CEHD
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Tom Reynolds
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Associate Professor, Instr/Communication, GC |
Thomas Kuehn
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Professor, Mechanical Eng, IT |
Karyn Van Erem
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Undergraduate student, Rhetoric program, COAFES |
| Daphne Walmer |
Director of Technical Communication, Medtronic |
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Footnote
Undergradate Reform and Services task forces to coordinate with one another. |
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