SANTA CRUZ, CA -- A new web site has just been launched that contains information about writing programs and instruction offered throughout the entire University of California system.

The site is designed for writing instructors, prospective and current UC students, parents, high school teachers and counselors, as well as others interested in college composition.

The purpose of the site is to provide information about writing requirements, courses, and special programs offered by each UC campus, supply resources on writing and writing instruction, and present the results of faculty research in the teaching of writing.

The UC Writing Institute (UCWRITE) has been in development for the past two years and is the result of work completed by faculty from UCSC, UC Berkeley, UCLA, UC Santa Barbara, and UC Davis.

The project was initially organized by UCSC lecturer Elizabeth Abrams, working in collaboration with Roz Spafford, chair of the UCSC Writing Program. In 2001, they received a Teaching, Learning and Technology Collaborative Grant from the Office of the UC President to begin the development of an online writing institute. The web site represents the first phase of this project.

"Writing programs at UC have grown up independently," Spafford said. "This site enables faculty across the system to get together and share ideas about teaching writing. The site also provides a public face for UC writing programs of particular interest to parents and students," she added.

Conceived as an institute as well as a web site, UCWRITE will additionally serve as a place where instructors can share research, new classroom technologies, and teaching materials, as well as discuss philosophies of instruction and composition.

"I think the web site addresses a long-standing need of UC writing faculty to communicate with each other and provide a repository of information about writing programs in the system," noted UCSC lecturer Patrick McKercher. "It’s a way for instructors to talk to each other, literally, through online discussion groups. This is particularly important as opportunities to meet face to face have become more rare of late."

The web site currently includes information about first-year writing programs for UC freshmen, resources for ESL/multilingual writers, and a section on the use of technology in teaching writing.

"More resources for upper-division courses and transfer students are being planned," McKercher said. "The site will be useful to all faculty members wishing to assist students in honing their writing," he added.

Although grant funding for the project may only be available for one more year, McKercher said that planning committee members are investigating ways to make the web site sustainable indefinitely.

"We’re very excited by the project and gratified by the initial response," McKercher said. "We are especially looking for feedback and participation from writing faculty and anyone else interested in writing."