Call for Proposals

The 16th International Writing Across the Curriculum Conference

WAC for Transitions: The Next 50 Years

June 14-17, 2023

Submissions for IWAC 2023 proposals closed on October 31, 2022. Notifications of acceptance were sent to presenters in November 2022. 


Dear Friends & Colleagues,

Our theme — WAC for Transitions: The Next 50 Years — recognizes the crucial moment at which we stand as practitioners of writing and communicating and the role we have in using the power of language to affect worldviews. We are at a decision-making point, a threshold in the profession: how can WAC help shape our futures? To that end, we hold a unique and rich perspective. From Dr. Barbara Walvoord’s 1969-1970 seminar, the earliest documented Writing Across the Curriculum seminar, to the 50th anniversary marked by IWAC 2020 hosted by Colorado State, WAC draws on deep experience in the project of deploying language across our campuses. 

During IWAC 2023, we want to celebrate the successes of our WAC experiences in that 50-year span, address the challenges that programs and faculty members have faced and recognize the opportunities awaiting us in the coming 50 years. But at this interim moment, let us also reflect on what we want WAC to be, who we want to address and reach, who we want to include in our conversations and what we need to do to accomplish the vision we hold for ourselves. 

WAC is an ever-evolving educational phenomenon, and never has that been more evident than in the face of current events. Over the past several years, WAC scholars have had to respond to changes brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, address changes and challenges students are facing in the transition from the academy to the workplace, continue to evolve and develop classroom cultures that welcome all students, regardless of background, to learn and succeed and navigate students and faculty alike through global tensions and crises. 

Each of these successes proves WAC practitioners are adaptable and constantly thinking about the future of their discipline. This conference calls for those practitioners to be forward-thinking in addressing new and existing challenges faced in the WAC community. We invite proposals that address broad categories of the next 50 years of WAC scholarship, including but not limited to the following:

  • The role of WAC in addressing social justice/social justice literacy– Topics such as educating faculty members about antiracist writing practices; thinking forward to how WAC becomes more focused on social justice literacy; the work left to do in WAC scholarship in terms of social justice literacy; helping cultivate inclusive and equitable environments for students and faculty
  • The role of WAC in a time of global turmoil– Topics such as the impact of global politics on WAC teaching and education; the role of language and communication in politics; open access to education; changes in curriculum due to the pandemic
  • From the academy to the professions– Topics such as WAC’s ability to adapt to a world that is growing increasingly focused on STEM careers; the value of writing education; transitioning from the academy to the workplace and how social justice plays into that transition; preparing students for communication at different stages of their lives; instilling the importance of writing education; dealing with resistance about the importance of written communication
  • WAC as a transnational movement– Topics such as WAC scholarship’s internationality; community building across national lines; inclusive linguistic practices; WAC in minority-serving institutions
  • WAC scholars as agents of change– Topics such as WAC scholars acting as agents of change in the current political, economic and social climate; COVID-related pedagogical changes; navigating global crises in the classroom; social justice literacy; what issues WAC addresses that might otherwise be ignored; pedagogical changes in the wake of COVID; WAC being a leader in social justice literacy and inclusive linguistic practices; dealing with increasing costs of education and budget cuts
  • The future of WAC as an educational moment– Topics such as the future of the WAC classroom; ideas that need to be developed/implemented in order to create inclusive classroom spaces; movements that need to be expanded upon or left behind; how to include K-12 educators, expand our reach to two-year college faculty, appeal to university administrators and engage community leaders
  • Addressing equity and access in WAC– Topics such as accessibility in teaching materials; inclusive language practices; antiracist assessment; creating equitable classroom experiences for all students; the lack of access to higher education in some communities
  • Nuts and bolts of WAC programming– Topics such as developing and sustaining a WAC program, including strategies for starting the program, promoting or selling your program to administrators and fellow faculty members, identifying and recruiting stakeholders, administering a program and assessment; the features of a successful WAC program
  • What do the next 50 years hold?– New topics emerging in WAC pedagogy

We welcome submissions for:

  • interactive workshops
  • panels (typically three or four speakers)
  • roundtables (typically five to seven speakers)
  • individual presentations (which will be combined with other proposals to form a panel)
  • teaching demonstrations
  • poster presentations (both print and digital)

Panels, roundtables and teaching demonstrations will be presented in 75-minute blocks, while workshops will be three hours long. Poster presentations will take place over two 75-minute blocks. 

We ask presenters to limit themselves to one speaking role in panels, roundtables and teaching demonstrations (excluding service as a chair or respondent to a panel). In addition to a speaking role on a panel, roundtable or teaching demonstration, we also encourage participants to consider participation as a workshop leader and as a presenter of a poster session.

We also ask presenters to consider issues of accessibility as they develop their presentation. Useful information about accessible presentations can be found on the Composing Access site at https://u.osu.edu/composingaccess/.

For more information about the conference and the call, please contact us at iwac2023@gmail.com. For the most up-to-date information on the conference, please follow us on Facebook and Instagram

Scholarships:

The 2023 International Writing Across the Curriculum conference organizers are pleased to announce the availability of registration scholarships to support scholars and practitioners, both national and international, who plan to attend the IWAC 2023 conference in Clemson, South Carolina, held on June 14-17, 2023, regardless of whether or not they will be presenting. Recipients were chosen and notified in November 2022.