Writing workshop engages potential students
English/creative writing majors will take on the role of a professor for the day Nov. 18, as
Waynesburg University will open its doors to students from five local high schools as part of the annual creative writing workshop hosted by the Department of English and Foreign Languages.
Dr. Amy Randolph, associate professor of English, is responsible for the preparation and execution of the workshop. She begins preparing in the spring by thinking about a date for the workshop.
The workshop has always taken place in November, but even more consistent are the attending districts who remain loyal from year to year. This year’s workshop will host students from McGuffey High School, Waynesburg Central High School, Carmichaels Area High School, Trinity High School and Chartiers-Houston High School.
The workshop consists of two sessions-poetry and fiction-a luncheon and a visit from a guest speaker. This year’s speaker is Shannon Reed, a former part-time faculty member at Waynesburg University.
The workshop, which is originally part of the Scholastic Arts and Writing Awards, is intended to provide students with the ability to discover both creative writing and their artistic thoughts.
“One of the purposes of the workshop at the beginning and still is, is just to give students an area, an opportunity to explore writing creatively and engage their imaginations,” Randolph said.
Megan McElligott, a senior at Waynesburg Central High School enrolled in the Introduction to Creative Writing course at Waynesburg University, is a three-time attendee of the workshop and agreed with Randolph’s statement.
“It’s a really good experience. You get to see a lot of different writings and you get to learn a lot of styles that you can write,” she said. “It helped me out a lot last year with my writing and this year.”
The sessions are unique because Randolph asks junior and senior English/creative writing students to lead the sessions, in addition to some faculty members. The junior and senior students are often paired with current freshmen and sophomores in an effort to train them to be future leaders.
Renee McElligott, senior associate director of admissions, assists Randolph with all of the behind-the-scenes work. McElligott said that the workshop additionally serves as a visitation day for students.
“I think it lets them [the Waynesburg students] show a different major than the average,” she said. “It just lets them [the attendees] see what our English and creative writing students are able to do. But I just think it lets them see a different major on campus.”
Despite the length of time she takes to prepare, Randolph is always happy with the outcome, saying that the event is well-received, often brigning in anywhere from 70 to 100 prospective students.
“I feel like it’s been very successful every year,” she said.
The day will begin with check-in at 9:40 a.m., followed by two sessions at 10 a.m. and 11 a.m. The luncheon, guest speaker, and student reading begins at noon and will conclude at 1:30 p.m.