Mission Statement
The Writing Program values writing as a process of producing knowledge and communicating ideas to academic, civic, and workplace audiences. Because writing well involves a complex set of practices, the Writing Program emphasizes college writing as a process that a student develops throughout her or his college career.
First-year writing courses at UMD provide a basis for both upper-level writing classes and also the writing students will need to complete to fulfill requirements in other courses. Our courses therefore support students as they learn to write effectively, think critically, and develop rhetorical awareness about print, visual, and digital texts.
In our teaching, Writing Program faculty stress inquiry-based research, critical reflection, revision, collaboration, and active learning. Our courses include the first-year- composition sequence, intermediate courses focused on creative and expository writing and writing in professional settings, and advanced courses in rhetoric, civic engagement, and theories of writing.