Greetings TYCA PNW Friends!
A new school year is upon us, and it’s time to register for the TYCA-PNW 2025 Conference. This year’s conference will be held at Columbia Basin College in Pasco, WA on Oct. 17-18. The theme is Poca a Poco (little by little). We would be grateful, if you would be willing to share this wonderful professional development opportunity widely, or at least with your own English department😉. We would love to see you there!
Lunch will be catered by local favorite Pacific Pasta and Grill. Lunch options are available on the form when you register for the conference. To secure your lunch choice, please register by Oct. 10.
Click here to register for the conference. Early registration rates are available through Oct. 1.
There are two hotels we recommend for accommodations.
Best Western Premier Pasco Inn & Suites
2811 N 20th Ave, Pasco, WA, 99301
(509) 543-7722
Use this link to secure the $169.00 conference rate by September 20.
Courtyard by Marriott Pasco
2101 W Argent Rd, Pasco WA, 99301
(509) 545-4011
State employees can select the "government rate" option.
We invite you to arrive early on Friday to attend the workshop presented by CBC’s own Sarah North, MLIS, Ed.S, M.S., Director for Library Services; Donny Anderson, M.S., M.Ed., Instructional Designer; and Katie Bullock, M.A., Instructional Designer. Friday’s workshop is titled "Using Multimodal Assignments to Support Constructivist Media Literacy." Here is its description:
How can we help students move beyond consuming media to critically analyzing and creating it? This session explores practical strategies for designing multimodal assignments—podcasts, infographics, digital stories—that foster constructivist media literacy in English courses. Participants will engage in hands-on activities, examine adaptable assignment prompts, and leave with tools and resources to scaffold multimodal projects that promote deeper rhetorical awareness and critical thinking.
Following the workshop, please join us for some food, drinks, and chatter at a local spot, which we’ll announce soon. The social will begin at 4:30.
Our keynote speaker on Saturday will be Christie Toth, Associate Professor and Coordinator of Transfer Initiatives and Community College Partnerships in the Department of Writing and Rhetoric Studies at the University of Utah. For the last three years she has co-hosted the Salt Lake MLA Institute on Reading and Writing Pedagogies at Access-Oriented Institutions with Salt Lake Community College’s Darin Jensen. The title of her keynote is “Compassionate Dispositions, Compassionate Practices: Community College Student Perspectives on What Makes Someone an Effective Literacy Teacher.” Here is its description:
This keynote address will present findings from a qualitative study of community college student perspectives on what makes someone an effective literacy teacher. Christie co-designed and co-conducted this study with a team of students from Salt Lake Community College who have participated in the college’s transfer bridge partnership with the University of Utah’s Department of Writing and Rhetoric Studies. In early 2025, the team interviewed 30 current SLCC students from a wide range of language backgrounds, identities, communities, and degree programs. This address will discuss two key interrelated themes from these interviews: compassionate teaching dispositions and compassionate practices. Drawing on interview findings and reflections from study co-researchers, Christie will share how the Department of Writing and Rhetoric Studies is using these findings to reimagine graduate education for future community college literacy faculty. She will invite conversation about how these findings might contribute to work in TYCA Pacific Northwest.
Attached you’ll find an overview of the conference schedule for your planning and convenience. We look forward to seeing you and let us know if you have any questions!
Annalee and Amy
TYCA-PNW 2025 Conference Co-chairs