VISION STATEMENT
The First-Year Writing program strives to provide an inclusive and consistent experience that prepares UCA students for the writing and communication demands of the 21st century.
As a program of composition scholars and teachers, we believe that effective teaching of writing fosters a reflective community of diverse readers and writers; cultivates rhetorical awareness of the writer’s purpose, audience, and context; and promotes flexible strategies for invention, drafting, and revision.
The First-Year Writing program further recognizes that careful reading, critical thinking, reliable research, and active engagement with varied perspectives are essential skills for students’ academic careers, workplaces, and thoughtful participation in civic life.
COURSE DESCRIPTIONS
WRTG 1310: Introduction to College Writing
Part of the lower-division UCA Core (general education) program and required of all students during the first semester they are eligible to enroll. This course introduces students to the writing process, focusing on audience, invention, and arrangement, and will be conducted as a workshop. Placement in this course is guided by the university’s Mathematics, Reading, and Writing Placement policy. [ACTS: ENGL 1013]
WRTG 1320: Academic Writing and Research
Part of the lower-division UCA Core (general education) program and required of all students during the first semester they are eligible to enroll. The course introduces students to academic argument based on substantiating, evaluating, and proposing claims. Research strategies are central to the course, which will be conducted as a workshop. Prerequisite: WRTG 1310 with a grade C or higher. [ACTS: ENGL 1023]
ESSAY CONTESTS
WriteOn
WriteOn is a university-sponsored annual writing competition held among students enrolled WRTG 1310: Introduction to College Writing. Winning selections of the WriteOn contest reflect the first-year writing program’s best examples of a writer’s cultural and rhetorical awareness. To submit your instructor-nominated essay for 2024, click here. Winning students will be notified via email in Spring 2025.
WriteOn Essay Award Winners
2022
1st Place: Isabella Mason, 1st Runner Up: Abigail Wells, 2nd Runner Up: Bridget Martinez-Teran
2021
1st Place: Kyla Anderson, 1st Runner Up: Jesus Fernandez, 2nd Runner Up: Heavenlee Mitchell
InkWire
InkWire is a university-sponsored annual writing competition held among students enrolled WRTG 1320: Academic Writing and Research. Winning selections of the InkWire contest will represent the first-year writing program’s most outstanding research essays. To submit your instructor-nominated essay for 2024, click here. Winning students will be notified via email in Spring 2025.
InkWire Essay Award Winners
2022
1st Place: Jordan Alvarado, 1st Runner Up: Kyla Anderson & Michael Isaac, 2nd Runner Up: Krista Yow
2021
1st Place: Shelley Wieburg, 1st Runner Up: Andre Walker, 2nd Runner Up: Aidan O. Lemley
FACULTY RESOURCES
Campus Resources
Emergency Procedures for Thompson Hall
FYW Specific Guidance and Syllabus Language [2020-21]
FYW Themed Course Proposal Form
Course Objectives for WRTG 1310 and WRTG 1320
UCA Syllabus Requirements [2020-21]
CONTACT US
Dr. Cristine Busser
First-Year Writing Coordinator
Win Thompson Hall 327
cbusser1@uca.edu
Ms. Cokey Allen
First-Year Writing Assistant Coordinator
Win Thompson Hall 305
callen@uca.edu