This past year was yet another busy one at the Writing Center. Beyond supporting students through nearly two thousand tutoring sessions—and thousands of additional connections through other services—writing tutors have been deeply engaged in research, campus outreach, and emerging conversations about writing and technology. This update offers a glimpse into that work and its impact.
Writing Tutor Research on GenAI and Writing Centers
In spring 2025, service-learning writing tutors investigated the impact of genAI on UVM faculty, undergraduate students, and writing tutors. They also reviewed existing literature about genAI in education more broadly and on writing centers more specifically. They shared their results with an audience of UVM administrators, faculty, staff, and students in March. Their findings have influenced the work of UVM’s university-wide AI committee and have been integrated into professional development workshops for faculty about teaching in the age of AI offered by the Writing in the Disciplines program. Learn about their findings and recommendations from their comprehensive report, A Changing Landscape: Generative AI in the Writing Center (PDF).
Presenting Research Findings at SUNY Adirondack
A cohort of these writing tutor researchers (Bobby Zimmerman, Dylan Moody A’Ness, and Liv Teare) attended the SUNY Council on Writing (CoW) conference in Queensbury, NY in October. They did an excellent job sharing their cohort’s group research into genAI with writing instructors and writing center directors and tutors beyond UVM. An extra bonus was having UVM writing center alum Robert Faivre, now Professor of English at SUNY Adirondack, moderate our panel and help facilitate a rich discussion of what writing centers are doing to keep up with developments in GenAI while also continuing to promote human connection, peer learning, and critical thinking.
Many thanks to contributors to the Writing in the Disciplines and Undergraduate Writing Center fund, established by long-term Directors Sue Dinitz and Jean Kiedaisch, whose generous donations to the fund supported undergraduate writing tutor attendance at the SUNY CoW conference. (If you choose to make a gift to the UVM Foundation, you are welcome to direct it to this fund!)
Student Research During International Writing Centers Week
We celebrated International Writing Centers Week from February 9-13 with our theme of “Share the Love” of writing, writers, and writing centers. Throughout the week, writing tutors tabled in the Davis Center and Howe Library, giving away treats and Valentine’s candy and bringing attention to our services while asking students to take a survey about decisions to use or not use the writing center. The student survey is part of “Writing Center Decisions”—a group research project writing tutors are conducting this semester. Stay tuned for next year’s newsletter when we hope to share their research into the choices students make to use or not use the writing center and how UVM students, faculty, and staff perceive the writing center!
UVM Connections
You already know that writing tutors gain valuable skills that transfer to life beyond UVM, and they learn how to represent their writing center experience on resumes and applications as they prepare for life after UVM. Help us develop their networking skills by joining UVM Connect and requesting membership in our subgroup of Writing Center Alumni! UVM Connect is a growing global network—think LinkedIn but only for Catamounts. When you join and identify yourself as “Willing to Help,” current and former writing tutors will know they can reach out to connect with you, ask questions about your career path, and learn more about how to translate the skills they are building as writing tutors into opportunities beyond UVM—just like you did!