About Us

Writing & Rhetoric at the University of Rhode Island participates in a wide range of activities. Please explore our links to learn more about each one.

The Writing & Rhetoric major for interested and interesting undergraduates
The Rhetoric & Composition graduate specialization for masters and doctoral students
The Writing Center for all writers, all levels, all disciplines, all stages of writing
General Education Writing courses for undergraduates throughout the university
The Writing Rhode Island Production Lab for our students and for use with any of our Lab Fee courses

What is Writing & Rhetoric?

Writing & Rhetoric is a contemporary field with its ancient roots in intellectual and democratic history.
We practice writing with consequences.
Writing & Rhetoric is writing that gets things done.

Our Major Is:

Interdisciplinary, with half of our students as double-majors
Experiential, with opportunities for internships and fieldwork
Technology-rich, with hands-on and production-based classes
Community-based, with real-world projects growing from issues of local significance

Our Graduate Specialization Is:

Praxis-based, emphasizing the interplay between theory and practice
Sequenced, with a core curriculum shared by each entering cohort
Supportive, with meaningful coursework, professional development, and interaction with faculty
Useful, with opportunities for guided practice in scholarship, teaching, and administration

Important Contact Information

Writing & Rhetoric Office 319 Roosevelt Hall 90 Lower College Road Kingston, RI 02881 Phone: 401.874.5932 Fax: 401.874.2628 Chair Nedra Reynolds
	Administrative Assistant:	Donna Hayden
	Undergraduate Advising (1st and 2nd year):	Helen O'Grady
	Graduate Advising:	Mike Pennell
	The Writing Center:	Jeremiah Dyehouse
	First Year Courses:	Kim Hensley Owens
	National Archives of Composition & Rhetoric:	Robert Schwegler
	Brown Bag Series:	Kim Hensley Owens
	Webmaster:	Joannah Portman Daley

Our Mission Statement

The department of Writing and Rhetoric embraces the collective goals of the University of Rhode Island and the College of Arts and Sciences, and endeavors to fulfill our function within their missions with the highest degrees of:

rigor in the pursuit of teaching and scholarly excellence,
responsible collaboration and appropriate interdisciplinary partnerships,
respectful outreach with the university and extramural communities,
responsiveness to changing conditions, and
programmatic and personal integrity.

Rhetoric's crucial role in the construction, maintenance, and on-going revision of public life has been recognized for centuries. As part of the Liberal Arts and General Education Core, rhetoric and composition can guide students in recognizing, valuing, and understanding difference at the same time they work toward developing and expressing their own critical stances. As an academic discipline, rhetoric and composition guides undergraduate and graduate students in theorizing and disseminating the complexities of language use. As a public practice, rhetoric and composition can be an empowering component of the university's and college's outreach arm. The faculty of Writing & Rhetoric wholeheartedly strive to develop each of these aspects of their program as appropriate to ever-changing university, disciplinary, and societal conditions. (Adopted 2002)

News

Please visit our announcements page for more details on the following news:

Congratulations to PhD candidate, Tim Amidon, who was recently selected as an Assistant Editor of Kairos: A Journal of Rhetoric, Technology, and Pedagogy.

Professor Caroline Gottschalk Druschke was selected for a summer research position with the EPA's Atlantic Ecology Division in Narragansett. Caroline will be working with them this summer to study the barriers to and opportunities for restoration in the Woonasquatucket watershed in northern Rhode Island. She looks forward to sharing her experience and findings with the Harrington School Communicating Science Cluster in the fall.

Professor Libby Miles has been selected for a national team of curriculum developers/facilitators for the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL). "Assessment in Action: Academic Libraries and Student Success" is a grant-funded project designed to help over 300 college and university librarians create projects to assess their impact on student learning.

Student Profiles

Get to know graduating senior Shauntel Martin.

Get to know Sara Gilman during her junior year.

See more student profiles.

Upcoming Events

Wednesday, May 8th
What: 495 Capstone Portfolios and Awards Presentation
Where:Lippitt Auditorium - 4th floor Lippitt Hall
When: 5:00pm - 7:00pm
Who: WRT faculty, students, friends, and families

Check out our Event Calendar to see what's happening

Publications

New publications by Gavin Hurley, Tim Amidon,Jeremiah Dyehouse, Cathyrn Molloy, Kim Hensely Owens, Mike Pennell, and Joannah Portman Daley!

See a full list of recent Publications by our faculty and graduate students.

special programs

National Archives of Composition and Rhetoric

Harrington School of Communication and Media - Department of Writing & Rhetoric