Photo by Sydney Trieu
Writing Center offers tutoring help to all students
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One by one, students filed into the library after school to attend the grand opening of the Writing Center, sponsored by the California State University, Los Angeles (CSULA), on Sept. 14.
Led by Dr. Robert Land, a professor at CSULA, the Writing Center was established to aid high school students with college and career readiness. Both college professors and college students will serve as tutors for the program, open to guiding any student and providing necessary feedback for improvement.
“We can help with just about any kind of interest,” Land said. “Some students come every week just to get mini-lessons on improving their writing. Others come for a month or so to get help writing a big assignment or research paper. Advanced students, English learners, struggling writers, and everyone else are welcome at the Writing Center.”
Department head and English teacher Karen Johnston emphasizes this, urging all students to take advantage of the program.
“I’ve always been supportive of the idea of [the program] coming [our school],” Johnston said. “[Teachers] could encourage students to go to the Writing Lab and work with pre-service teachers on writing their essay. Students can also go there to work on their college statements. I know [San Gabriel has] Project HOPE also as a resource, but this can be an additional resource.”
Senior David Auyeung was one of the many who participated in the Writing Center’s first session. During the session, he felt that he “was learning how to become a better writer” and mentioned that “being around these amazing writers was really inspiring.”
“ [The tutors helped] me think of ways to connect my thoughts to a metaphor and expand on my writing. They also taught me [an] exercise [where I’d] write out a list of my life to help with my college apps,” Auyeung said. “I actually enjoyed [the program] a lot so I would [come back] for sure.”
However, students were not the only ones learning; first-year English teacher Alicia Canzano also attended the Writing Center’s opening, assisting Land while also hoping to build on her own teaching skills.
“Dr. Land is very smart, and I would like to learn what I can,” Canzano said. “I wanted to learn ways to work with students and get them to want to learn. I wanted to incorporate Land’s strategies with my own students.”
The Writing Center program was initially integrated into the Alhambra Unified School District (AUSD) last year; beginning in the winter of 2015, it was first established at Mark Keppel High School before expanding to Alhambra High School and now San Gabriel High School.
“There are a lot of good reasons why we chose to work with the AUSD,” Land said. “The high quality of instruction and the diverse and dedicated student body are two reasons the district schools are so appropriate as learning sites for future teachers.”
Land adds that because “CSULA enrolls many students from AUSD, [there is] a vested interest in helping increase students’ chances of success in college.”
“It is a real honor and privilege to be guests at [San Gabriel High School], and it is so rewarding and so much fun getting to work with [its] students,” Land said. “For professors and tutors alike, the hours that we spend in the Writing Centers are often the best hours of our week.”
The Writing Center will be open to all students every Wednesday from 2-4 p.m. in the library.
