Fall WAC Event Calendar
We know that teaching writing intensive courses requires a specific set of skills. The WAC program offers a series of workshops and initiatives every semester to support you as a teacher of writing and as a writer. Below, you will see our upcoming available events.
Bookmark this page to stay in touch with what’s upcoming each semester to hone your skills as both a teacher of writing and a writer.
Want to be even more in tune with us? Join our Mailing List. (Do we have that?)
Week of WAC
Kick off the 2026-2027 academic year with a week of Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC) workshops! Each 45-minute online session is rooted in writing studies research and ECU faculty’s classroom experiences to provide practical and innovative strategies that will inspire and support your students’ writing success. Hope to see you there!
Getting Started with Writing Across the Curriculum
Date and Time: August 24th at 3p.m.
Location: online
Facilitator: Kerri Flinchbaugh
This online workshop introduces faculty to the principles and practices of Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC). Participants will explore how writing can support student learning in any discipline, not just as a means of assessment but as a tool for thinking, engagement, and knowledge-building. Through practical examples and discussion, the session will highlight approachable strategies for integrating writing into courses, designing effective assignments, and responding to student writing in manageable ways. Faculty will leave with concrete ideas for using writing to enhance learning in their own classrooms.
Getting Started with Writing Across the Curriculum Workshop Registration
Cultivating Metacognition: Strengthening Writing with Transparent Teaching
Date and Time: August 25th at 3p.m.
Location: online
Facilitator: Kerri Flinchbaughk with a panel of faculty
Metacognition (thinking about thinking) serves as the cornerstone for meaningful, adaptable, and lasting learning. By fostering metacognitive writing practices, educators can empower student writers to activate prior knowledge, apply new strategies, reflect on their strengths and challenges, and transfer skills across various contexts. In this workshop, participants will explore the Transparency in Teaching and Learning (TILT) framework and see how other ECU instructors have used it to enhance student metacognitive awareness. By clearly communicating the purpose, task, and criteria of assignments, educators can help students understand the “why” behind their learning, fostering deeper reflection and self-regulation. Participants will leave with actionable techniques, adaptable templates, and a TILT-informed metacognitive checklist to support effective course planning and improve student writing outcomes.
Cultivating Metacognition Workshop Registration
Principles of Effective Feedback for Writing Across the Curriculum
Date and Time: August 26th at 3p.m.
Location: online
Facilitator: Nikki Caswell
Providing feedback on student writing doesn’t have to be exhausting to be effective. This workshop highlights seven key principles of feedback that save time while deepening student learning. Participants will explore strategies for crafting comments that are clear, purposeful, and actionable, helping students engage meaningfully with revision and transfer their learning to future writing tasks. We’ll also discuss approaches to balancing efficiency with individualized support. By the end of the session, attendees will leave with practical feedback models and techniques to make responding to student writing more impactful and sustainable.
Principles of Effective Feedback Workshop Registration
Designing Assignments for Visible, Human Thinking
Date and Time: August 27th at 3p.m.
Location: online
Facilitator: Kerri Flinchbaugh
As generative AI becomes increasingly accessible to students, writing assignments that emphasize surface-level correctness or final products are easier than ever to outsource. This workshop explores practical strategies for (re)designing writing assignments so that human thinking (interpretation, judgment, inquiry, and reflection) remains central and visible. Participants will learn how to shift assignments toward lived experience, inquiry-based writing processes, rhetorical decision-making, and documented revision practices that make student reasoning assessable. Through examples and guided reflection, faculty will leave with concrete approaches for designing writing tasks that cultivate intellectual engagement, encourage authentic student voice, and support meaningful learning in the age of AI.
Designing Assignments Workshop Registration
Contract Grading: Supporting Engagement & Ownership in Student Learning
Date and Time: August 28th at 3p.m.
Location: online
Facilitator: Kim Thompson
Contract Grading is an assessment tool that pushes the boundaries of traditional grading schemes to promote open and clear instructor-student communication, infuse agency and autonomy into the process of student learning, and promote equitable learning communities with increased transparency and engagement. In this session, ECU faculty will share their experience with labor-based grading contracts along with their influence on teaching and learning.
Contract Grading Workshop Registration
Kerri Flinchabugh (flinchbaughk@ecu.edu)
ADA Accomodation 252-737-1018 or ada-coordinator@ecu.edu
Additional Workshops
AI & Student Writing: Supporting Voice, Inquiry, & Learning
Date and Time: September 23rd at 3pm and January 27th at 3pm online
Facilitator: Will Banks and a panel of ECU faculty
Generative AI tools are rapidly changing how students approach writing. Rather than focusing on detection or prohibition, this workshop explores how instructors across disciplines can adapt writing assignments to keep thinking, inquiry, and disciplinary reasoning at the center of student work. Participants will consider how these technologies are reshaping the role of writing in college courses. Through examples and discussion, we will explore practical strategies to encourage authentic engagement and support meaningful learning. Faculty will leave with concrete ideas for rethinking writing tasks, guiding responsible AI use, and helping students develop their own voices as writers and thinkers in their disciplines.
AI & Student Writing Workshop Workshop Registration
Seeing & Hearing Feedback: Screencasting Responses to Student Writers
Location: Joyner 1008
Implementing Transparency: A Simple Shift with a Big Impact
Date and Time: September 8th at 3pm and January 20th at 3pm
Location: online
Facilitator: Kerri Flinchbaugh with a panel of faculty
Effective assignment design plays a crucial role in student success, yet too often, students are left to decipher expectations with minimal guidance. This workshop explores how transparent assignment design can enhance student engagement, performance, and confidence by providing clear expectations and purposeful structure. Participants will learn about the Transparency in Learning and Teaching (TILT) framework, see how other ECU faculty have used it in their writing classrooms, and consider how it could be applied in their writing instruction. By articulating the purpose, task, and criteria for success, instructors can improve communication and foster deeper learning. Join us to explore strategies for designing assignments that clarify expectations while empowering all students to take ownership of their writing.
Implementing Strategies Workshop Registration
Considering Neurotypes: Rethinking Writing Instruction
Date and Time: September 2nd at 3p.m. and January 19th at 3p.m.
Location: online
Facilitator: Soph Myers-Kelley
Students bring valuable perspectives and unique cognitive strengths to the writing process, yet traditional writing instruction often fails to tap into such potential. This workshop invites instructors to rethink writing by exploring how students with particular neurotypes engage with language, organization, and expression. Participants will gain insight into potential challenges related to executive functioning, working memory, and sensory processing that can affect writing. Through interactive discussions and case studies, we will examine practical, research-based strategies to create more inclusive and supportive writing environments. Attendees will leave with concrete approaches for fostering neurodiverse students’ strengths while addressing possible barriers to writing success.
Considering Neurotypes Workshop Registration
Kerri Flinchabugh (flinchbaughk@ecu.edu)
ADA Accommodation 252-737-1018 or ada-coordinator@ecu.edu
Book Groups
Are you looking for other ways to enrich your toolkit for understanding and refining your methodology of teaching writing intensive courses at ECU? Each Fall and Spring semester we host a book group on one or more thoughtfully chosen, acclaimed books that enrich our understanding of the ever-evolving landscape of teaching writing. Join faculty across the disciplines to discuss, debate, and explore the nuances of how technology, culture, and education impact not only how we teach writing, but the impact of our practices on ourselves and our students as well.
Every book group comprises of two to three two-hour sessions conveniently hosted online. While space is limited and registration is required, we provide all your reading materials for you.
Visit our Book Groups page to tune in and register for our upcoming series and explore past book topics. If you are exploring this page between semesters or over the summer, check back close to the beginning of the semester to learn about and register for our chosen book for the semester.
Looking for More?
In addition to our rotating landscape of events, we offer several static services to support you.
Support for you as a Teacher:
Note: future add online teaching resources
Support for you as a Writer:
Grant Writing Support
Writing Accountability Partners
Looking for something specific? Please contact us. (insert dropdown formstack contact form > Kerri > Rachel > Will depending on subject)