The WPA Consultant-Evaluator Service is inviting nominations for its panel of evaluators.
Description of the Service:
The WPA Consultant-Evaluator (C-E) Service offers colleges and universities the opportunity to improve and assess their writing programs by employing a method similar to regional accreditation agencies. The Director of the Service assigns a team of two trained Consultant-Evaluators to review a requesting program’s written self-study, participate in a two-day campus visit, and produce a co-authored written report with their evaluation and recommendations in a timely manner. WPA Consultant-Evaluators are leaders in the field of writing studies and hold positions at a wide range of types of two- and four-year colleges and universities. All are experienced administrators with a national perspective on teaching, best practices in writing instruction, and writing program administration. Their mission is to determine a program’s unique strengths and weaknesses, offer suggestions to resolve problems within the local institutional context, and make recommendations to improve programmatic effectiveness. A site visit typically ends in a meeting with upper-level administrators to review a summary of the team’s recommendations. A list of current Consultant-Evaluators can be found at https://tinyurl.com/mckxzpne.
Position Description and Qualifications:
Membership on the C-E Service panel is a voluntary, unpaid position, though Consultant-Evaluators are compensated for the work they do (currently $2000/each + travel expenses) by institutions that contract with the Service. Consultant-Evaluators can expect to make one visit per year, on average, though this may vary depending on the number of visits requested and C-E panelists’ availability. C-Es are also expected to attend the Service’s workshops and meetings, including a Saturday afternoon workshop at the CCCC conference and occasional ad hoc virtual meetings at other times during the year. Panelists may also be asked to participate on subcommittees or in workshops/presentations the Service makes at conferences.
Those nominated for positions on the C-E panel should be nationally recognized mid- to late-career leaders in the field of writing studies (not retired) with a strong record of effective leadership experience in professional organizations and high visibility and recognition among writing program administrators. Some experience with faculty governance or administrative service beyond the department and writing program level is preferred. All members of the C-E panel must be members of CWPA and are expected to adhere to the C-E Service’s ethical guidelines (https://tinyurl.com/ycy2sj5d). In most cases, members of the C-E panel should plan to commit to 5 years of service (renewable). Previous experience with program review and assessment is a plus.
Areas of Particular Interest and Expertise:
We are especially interested in candidates who will help the Service realize its strong commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion among its members across a broad spectrum of ethnicities, national origins, abilities, genders and sexual identities, institutional types, and disciplinary areas of expertise.
We are particularly interested at this time in candidates with a background/expertise in areas including but not limited to anti-racist pedagogies, transnational writing and writing programs, online writing instruction, artificial intelligence (AI), dual enrollment programs, civic engagement and advocacy, professional and technical writing, WAC/WID, or writing centers. We especially want to invite nominees who have experience working at community colleges, small liberal arts colleges, and minority-serving institutions.
Nomination Process:
We welcome self-nominations as well as nominations from any member of the writing studies and WPA communities. Please send the nominee’s name, contact information, institution, and a brief paragraph describing their qualifications to the Director of the C-E Service, Dr. Michael Pemberton, at michaelp by November 15, 2023. These nominees will be reviewed by the CWPA C-E Service Nominating Committee, and selected candidates will be invited to submit a full c.v. and letter of application and interest. Nominations and submitted applications do not automatically guarantee an invitation to join the panel, which depends on the Service’s specific needs and available openings at the time.
Dr. Michael A. Pemberton, Professor
Director, University Writing Center
Director, WPA Consultant-Evaluator Service
Associate Publisher for Journals, The WAC Clearinghouse
Department of English, P.O. Box 8026
Georgia Southern University