2017 Stegner "Young Scholars" Writing Institute
Institute Faculty:
Monica Ferguson (Co-Director), Laura Scarpulla (Co-Director)
U-COE: Jan Dole, Kerry Herman, Colli Lucas SLCSD: Wendy Blankenship, Megan Corrigan
Creation is a knack which is empowered by practice, and like almost any skill, it
is lost if you don’t practice it.
A teacher enlarges people in all sorts of ways besides just his subject matter.
---Wallace Stegner
The University of Utah's Urban Institute for Teacher Education (U-UITE) and the Salt Lake City School District (SLCSD) are co-sponsoring the 9th Annual Stegner "Young Scholars" Writing Institute to be held June 5-16, 2017 with funding provided by the Salt Lake Education Foundation, and the University of Utah College of Education (U-COE). The Writing Institute invites secondary-level writers (particularly English language learners and those from first-generation families to attend college), as well as secondary teachers from the Salt Lake City School District (SLCSD) to discover the power of writing by increasing achievement as writers and teachers. Students have the opportunity to experience college life during the two-week Institute. Their inspiration is influenced by the life and literary legacy of Wallace Stegner. Institute faculty from the U-COE and SLCSD support participants in a stimulating and challenging, social environment to learn and refine the art of effective writing and writing instruction. The Writing Institute’s research-based approach applies best-practices for strategic and process writing. The targeted outcomes are to (a) increase achievement for the participant writers and teachers of writing, and (b) provide an engaging academic outreach experience that supports students to become college-bound for the University of Utah.
Click below to see highlights of our 2017 summer institute!!
Daily Format
For the two-week duration of the Writing Institute, attendees are immersed in writing workshops for four-hours daily (Monday through Friday) on the University of Utah campus in the College of Education. In order to successfully increase writing achievement, the institute size is limited to 60 secondary students (40-50 below- and 10-20 above-writing proficiency); and 10-12 secondary teachers (language arts), all selected from the SLCSD middle and high schools. Daily instruction is provided during the first week by the Institute’s faculty with the teacher participants gradually assuming the responsibility for the daily instruction during the second week. Student writing is guided in small groups by Institute Faculty in partnership with teacher participants. Students use evidence-based, strategy development to write and publish essays in their very own publication, Our Voices Magazine.
Key Facts
• The Inspiration: Wallace Stegner (his life and his writings); other published authors.
• The Power: Participants learn to harness the power of writing by increasing skills in writing & teaching.
• The Participants (2017): Writing workshop community for 57 secondary students, 10 teachers from SLCSD (emphasis on English language learners); and Institute faculty (from the U-COE and SLCSD).
• The Skills: Strategic writing (genre-specific); self-regulation; discussions on the “craft.”
• The Publication: Our Voices magazine (argumentative essays).
• The Outcomes: Increased achievement in writing and writing instruction for students and teachers; and, increased engagement in academic outreach experiences on the University of Utah campus.
• The Follow-Up: Publication and dissemination of 2017 magazine; and, preparation for 2018 Institute.