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Our Students' Writing
Celebration of Writing
The 2010 Celebration of Writing will be held Wednesday, May 5, 2010, from 11:30 am - 3:00 pm in Goodell. The Celebration is the Writing Program's annual showcase of undergraduate student writing. It's our chance to honor the work done in First Year Writing (Englwrit 111, 112, and 112H), Junior Year Writing, and the Experimental Writing Workshops. We also recognize those student writers whose essays have been selected for the annual Student Writing Anthology; we award winners of our Best Text Contest; and we honor the student tutors who work in the University Writing Center. In addition to displays of student work, there will be readings, a keynote address, and refreshments. The theme of this year's gathering is "Words Near and Far." Please join us!
For information about the Writing Program's annual Best Text Contest, which is awarded every year at the Celebration, scroll down or click here.
Student Writing Anthology
The Writing Program's annual Student Writing Anthology, a required text in all First Year Writing courses here, celebrates the accomplishments of students enrolled in Basic Writing, College Writing, and Junior Year Writing courses at UMass Amherst. Published yearly, it rewards our student authors with public recognition and an opportunity to have their voices heard beyond the walls of the classroom. Anthologized essays take a variety of forms: some explore and interpret the meaning of personal experience; others reflect on social, cultural, and historical issues; many prove that careful research and close reading not only provide data and expert opinion in support of a claim but result in new and revealing perspectives on the world. Teachers: click here to submit a student essay from your class.
The current edition of the Anthology, 2009-2010, is published by Pearson Custom Publishing (ISBN 978-0-558-30607-6) and is for sale in the Textbook Annex. Last year's edition is available below as a PDF download. By putting this publication on the Web, we hope to broaden our students' readership and inspire both teachers and students to aim high and explore a variety of approaches to academic discourse. We invite readers to enjoy these essays and what they can teach us about the choices writers make in terms of organization, development, and style.
Student Writing Anthology, 2008-09 (PDF)
Best Text Contest
A highlight of our annual Celebration of Writing is the announcement of the Best Text Contest winners. All students enrolled in first- and junior-year writing courses at UMass Amherst, fall or spring semester, are eligible to submit an essay to that year's contest. Awards are given in the following categories:
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Englwrit 111, Basic Writing;
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Englwrit 112, College Writing; and
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Junior Year Writing courses across the University.
Prizes for both Basic and College Writing are as follows: First Place Essay: $200; Second Place Essay: $150; Third Place Essay: $75; and Best Non-Traditional Essay (Multimedia/Visual Text): $200. Prizes for Junior Year Writing are as follows: Best Short Text (up to 5 pages): $200; Best Long Text (6 pages and above): $200; and Best Multimedia/Non-traditional Format: $200. Essays must have been written for an assignment in Basic Writing, College Writing, or a Junior-Year Writing course. A panel of judges looks for excellent writing that reflects the goals of the course the student is enrolled in. Contest submissions from Fall classes are due in December, Spring classes in April, with winners announced at the Celebration of Writing in May.
For more information about submitting a text from Basic or College Writing (Englwrit 111/112/112H), click here.
For more information about submitting a text from a Junior Year Writing course, click here.
You can also call the Writing Program office at 545-0610 or email us.
