by Katie Stewart
English Instructor Greenville Technical College, Greenville, SC
M.A. 2014

BLTN’s Jessica Dean on “Tennessee Promise” – Free community college tuition in Tennessee. Click to enlarge.

During the summer session in Vermont, community college instructors and higher education professionals gathered for a one-day event to discuss the national conversation regarding community colleges. We considered aspects of the recent scholarship and discourse surrounding community colleges in general and college writing in particular. Community colleges have risen to a prominent place in the broader landscape of higher education, and as writing teachers play an important part in the community college experience, it is a good time for Bread Loafers involved in community colleges to support one another and advance the dialogue about college writing.

Pellissippi State Community College students and faculty marching in an MLK Day parade. Photo courtesy of Jessica Dean

In the morning session, we began the discussion with the question “What is writing?” Many instructors shared their individual methods of teaching writing and the institutional standards that apply to their classrooms and students. We noted the challenges surrounding the politics of writing, especially for developmental writing courses. We explored the importance of critical media literacy, digital access, and process-oriented writing instruction. Later in the afternoon, several of us met to share specific curriculum resources, including textbooks, classroom activities, and writing projects. Many thanks to Robert Baroz, Nina Davidson, Jessica Dean, Dr. Lyndon Dominique, Matt Fiorentino, Janine Fujioka, Dixie Goswami, Susannah Kilbourne, Kelli Reno, and Dr. Jackie Royster for their valuable contributions to the day.

It is our desire to invite the Bread Loaf community into more conversations regarding community college, and to invite more community college teachers into the Bread Loaf community. Anyone interested in the scholarship around community colleges is most welcome. Please join us on the web at  https://groups.google.com/d/forum/bread-loaf-two-year-network, or email to me at stewart.kathryn.r@gmail.com.