The “Write” Place To Go

As I walk into the Writing Center in the middle of my lunch period, I’m greeted by a calm, almost sleepy environment. A student-teacher grades essays while a student editor looks up from the paper she’s reading with a classmate. The Writing Center just might be one of Stuyvesant’s best-kept secrets: though students may have heard about it through morning announcements or from their English teacher urging them to visit, the small room next to the English Office is rarely filled to maximum, and some freshmen have had trouble finding it amidst the other subsections of room 615. As the Writing Center celebrates its tenth birthday, it’s astonishing to realize just how much it has changed in that short period of time.

English teacher Katherine Fletcher created the Writing Center ten years ago. Initially, it was staffed only by student teachers. Stuyvesant typically welcomes four student teachers in the English Department every semester, and now, as part of their requirements while working here, they edit essays at the Writing Center.

Unfortunately, as student-teachers and editors are well aware of, the Writing Center can be empty on some days but crowded on others, sometimes to the point that students are turned down due to a lack of editors and the time to look at their papers. This situation is common during college essay season and whenever a teacher requires a visit from the Writing Center for an assignment. While the addition of student-editors started out as a way to deal with this traffic, Holly Schecter, a former English teacher who now works part-time supervising the Writing Center, explains that the availability of both graduate and Stuyvesant students is what makes the Writing Center different from any peer editing students might do with their friends or classmates. “Our student teachers have more education and therefore stronger content knowledge. Our student editors have a strong sense of engagement with our school and a desire to see their peers succeed,” she said.

Up until two years ago, the Writing Center was stationed in a corner of the library. However, Schecter and the English Department staff decided that a new location would be ideal, and conveniently, there was a room open. The move has been well received by most students— now they can visit throughout the period and do not need to worry about the library filling up if they need essay advice. Schecter also pointed out that the library is intended to be a quiet space while editing’s nature requires conversation. Senior and student-editor Amanda Yagerman explained, “I get to hear about different books and different classes and what everyone is doing, and often, somebody has an assignment that I did, so I can reminisce a little bit about that class and that teacher.”

In addition, since its inception, the Writing Center has experienced numerous days of high demand in addition to days of low demand, and it simply could not fit within that corner of the library (even today, the editors sometimes have trouble seating themselves separately at the tables in the room). “I also think having our own room legitimizes our work a bit more,” Schecter said.

The Writing Center allows Schecter, who has been on leave from classroom teaching, to learn more than she can as a regular teacher with about 170 students. “It’s allowed me to work with my English department colleagues in a new and interesting way. I’ve learned so much from reading their assignments and working with their students,” she reflected.

Schecter will soon be passing on the torch to English teacher Lauren Stuzin as Schecter will be moving to the West Coast with her family in November. Stuzin is extremely excited to take on this new role. Stuzin has fond memories of working there from when she was a student-teacher a few years ago. “I believe deeply in collaboration, and I think it is essential to true understanding and communication, whether in English class or beyond,” Stuzin commented. She hopes to improve the Writing Center by fostering a creative environment that many students feel comfortable working in.

“I also really hope to make the writing center a safe, warm, welcoming space for students to explore their ideas and their writing,” Stuzin said. “I want to better understand what my students need and how the Writing Center can best address those needs.”