Our Amazing Clients

Woodland Cemetery Preservation Project

Sarah Richardson’s Fall English 1030 class worked alongside Clemson’s Cemetery Preservation Committee to create materials to educate the undergraduate student population about the historic preservation project on campus. The class’s project tackled topics of race, gender and class while addressing how historical information — and how we communicate and write about it — shapes our understandings. The documents the class created focused on four areas: the silencing of the cemetery’s history; the launching and importance of the preservation project; the understanding of how race, gender, class and religion impact the campus now and in the past; and the next steps of continued community participation. This partnership with the Cemetery Preservation Committee allowed students to provide ideas about reaching Clemson’s undergraduate community in a way that would resonate both with their age group and the level of information about the University that students have when they first come to campus.

Centerville Elementary School Reading Buddies

Phil Randall’s Fall English 1030 class paired up with a third-grade class in Anderson, South Carolina to support their reading, writing and college aspirations. His students became reading buddies with students at Centerville Elementary School, including video chatting about a reading assignment and writing letters about what they learned. A highlight of the semester was a field trip to campus where the elementary schoolers got to meet their reading buddies, visit a college classroom and even stop for ice cream at the ‘55 Exchange. Randall’s class also created a newsletter for the parents and students of the third-grade class called “The Reading Ram” that included topics such as how parents can impact their children’s reading abilities, the benefits of reading at school and at home, book recommendations and an illustration to color. But the third graders weren’t the only ones who learned something from the partnership; Randall’s students learned valuable communication skills, including information design, writing for a variety of audiences and writing for a newsletter.

Journalism Experience with The Tiger

Mike Pulley’s journalism classes are unique: their classroom operates like a functioning newsroom. Working with The Tiger student newspaper, Pulley’s students wrote news articles and features for publication, complete with the proper style and formatting for a newspaper. His students had a real and specific audience for their writing, and they advanced their critical thinking, creativity and research skills by coming up with and writing about topics that are relevant to their audience. First, they had to conceptualize what news is, especially for the paper’s audience, and then they conducted primary research for their stories. The students employed online research, interviewing and notetaking skills, often talking to high-level University officials on a professional level they have never experienced before. They were also responsible for taking photographs suitable for publication to accompany their story. In addition to aiding The Tiger by providing quality content on stories that would otherwise be overlooked, these students contributed work that helps to boost campus discourse, gained confidence and skills to prepare them for the workplace and had the opportunity to see their work published as undergraduates.

Jasmine Road Research and Grant

In both the Fall and Spring semesters, Will Cunningham’s business writing classes worked with Jasmine Road, a nonprofit residential program for
women survivors of human trafficking, prostitution and addiction in Greenville. The nonprofit needed help gathering research for their fundraising efforts and needed skilled writing for their grant applications, which aligned well with the capabilities of Cunningham’s classes. In the Fall, the class completed a research report on Jasmine Road’s five impact areas, and they used that report to write and submit a $25,000 Bank of America grant. In the Spring, the class revised and updated the research report and wrote a $20,000 TD Bank grant. Both semesters, the organization’s leadership met with the class and shared lunch prepared by Jasmine Kitchen, their social enterprise lunch cafe that provides job training, employment and career building opportunities for survivors. Cunningham’s students were very excited about their partnership with Jasmine Road, and they gained valuable experience in grant writing and client work.

Makerspace Usability Testing

Knowing the benefit of completing real-world problem-based projects, Katalin Beck partnered her technical writing classes with the Clemson Makerspace across both semesters. The client needed students with knowledge of usability testing and test data interpretation — skills learned in Beck’s class — to test and analyze their standard operating procedures. To test the SOPs, the students worked in pairs. One student was the usability testing subject, who used the SOP for a 3D printer, laser cutter or vinyl cutter. The other student was the test administrator, who observed the test subject following the SOP to complete their task. The test administrator collected pre- and post-task survey data and took observational notes. The student groups then aggregated, analyzed and reported the data in a usability report and presented their findings and actionable recommendations in a meeting with the client. Beck’s students had the empowering position of tackling a tangible documentation problem and using their writing skills for a real-life challenge. Working for a client, instead of working for a professor, is the real test of students’ understanding of what audience-centered writing and real-life project management mean.