One writing program's everyday history

one syllabus, one workshop, one memo at a time...

What is NUWPArc?

NUWPArc is an evolving resource featuring “everyday” materials from Northeastern University’s Writing Program over the last 50 years.

Our records explore our writing program’s past and its possibilities.

We currently have 2,097 records in our holdings—from assignment sheets to committee descriptions, course descriptions to program memos—figures and floorplans, handbooks, program reviews, and more. Our collection includes records that help us (re)consider what a writing program is by exploring what it does.

Today, over 250 records are publicly available to explore.

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Quick Facts

When Where Who

When

Required writing classes at Northeastern date back to the early 20th century.

There isn’t one moment in time that marks the official beginning of the Northeastern University Writing Program. Today, it is one of the largest programs in Northeastern’s College of Social Sciences and Humanities, offering more than 350 writing courses per year.

Where

Who

The first official Writing Program roles were filled in the 1980s.

In 1982, the University hired its first Writing Program Coordinator, Dr. Richard Bullock. In 1986, Professor Kathleen Kelly became Writing Program Director. Fast forward 30 years... it was in Professor Kelly's office that seven boxes of physical documents were found in a filing cabinet that had been locked for decades. Over 500 records from the "original seven" boxes have been digitized and exist in NUWPArc's holdings. We are working to add many of these records to our public collection.

"We have a lot of students, we have these required writing courses, how do we place them in those courses, what should those courses look like in terms of curriculum and pedagogy, how do those courses function within larger requirements of the institution? These are all questions that every writing program in the United States deals with all the time."

– Neal Lerner, Professor & Chair, English Department (2023)

Exhibits

Commentary

Processes

What is a writing program?

That’s one question (among many) this project invites you to explore. NUWPArc features exhibits built by undergraduate and graduate student Research Assistants highlighting some of what we’ve learned from records of interest.

Just like this project, our understanding of our writing program is evolving. We invite you to explore with us, learn about our processes, and share written commentary on collection materials.

New knowledge with shared history.

Hear from people who helped shape today's Writing Program.

Advanced Writing in the Disciplines

Between 2020 and 2021, Professor Neal Lerner interviewed five former Directors of Advanced Writing in the Disciplines (AWD), representing 25 years of leadership in program development. These oral histories describe how AWD evolved through administrative and curricular changes as the University and Writing Program transformed.

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NUWPArc News

We'll keep you posted when we add to our public collection.