Connecticut Writing Project-Fairfield to host Bridgeport students for daylong writing conference at Fairfield University

Connecticut Writing Project-Fairfield to host Bridgeport students for daylong writing conference at Fairfield University

Image: Bryan Crandell The Connecticut Writing Project-Fairfield (CWP), based at Fairfield University, will welcome more than 100 Bridgeport youth in grades 8 through 12 to campus on May 21, 2013, for the first Writing Our Lives-Bridgeport conference. Sponsored in part by Bank of America, the daylong event will highlight the importance of writing in and out of school in a wide variety of genres.

The media is invited to this event.

"We are extremely thankful for Bank of America's investment to writing programs for Connecticut youth," said CWP Director, Bryan Ripley Crandall, Ph.D. "Their willingness to sponsor our work has helped us to envision larger events for young writers in southern Connecticut."

The Writing Our Lives-Bridgeport conference offers several workshops led by writers in a variety of careers and professions. "We've invited journalists, poets, and academics," said Dr. Crandall, an assistant professor in Fairfield's Graduate School of Education and Allied Professions. "We have presenters who compose for media organizations, who work with international non-profits, and who promote for the arts."

The day will also feature the creative work of young adult novelist and children's writer Kwame Alexander, who recently was nominated for the NAACP book awards

"Bank of America is committed to supporting initiatives that open the door to future employment opportunities for young people in Southern Connecticut," said Bill Tommins, Southern Connecticut market president, Bank of America. "The Writing Our Lives-Bridgeport conference doesn't just provide an outlet for creative expression, it connects participants with the communications expertise they will need to successfully enter the workforce."

The Connecticut Writing Project-Fairfield is one of three National Writing Project locations in the state. Each year the CWP works at Fairfield University, CCSU, and UCONN to sponsor summer institutes for teachers and to offer youth programming with a mission to promote best practices for writing. There are two sessions of the 2013 Young Writers' Institute for students in grades 6 to 12-July 8 through 19 and July 22 through August 2. CWP-Fairfield will also run a new Younger Writers' Institute for children in grades 3 to 5 from July 8 through 12. All sessions run Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. with lunch included. Applications and more details are available at www.cwpfairfield.org .

"The Common Core State Standards adopted by Connecticut expects a lot more writing across all content areas and grade levels," Dr. Crandall said. "Students will need to demonstrate proficiency in a wider variety of genres written for audiences with purposes that matter to them. Educators who are part of the National Writing Project network are better prepared to these challenges." NWP is often applauded as the best professional development model for teachers and the positive influence they have on preparing students as writers in school and beyond.

The Writing Our Lives-Bridgeport event is meant to stimulate conversations about writing and literacy. Working with Hoops4Hope, a non-profit that teaches children life skills in Africa, the participants will explore what ‘Literacy4Life' means. "We want every student who attends the conference to leave inspired. We want them to return to school with a passion for writing and changing the world."

For more information on this workshop and other CWP events and initiatives, contact Dr. Bryan Ripley Crandall at bcrandall@fairfield.edu. Reporters interested in covering the event should contact Meredith Guinness, assistant director of Media Relations, at (230) 254-4000, ext. 2950 or mguinness@fairfield.edu.

Editors: Young adult novelist Kwame Alexander, the keynote speaker, will be available for interviews from 10 to 11 a.m. and will give the keynote address at 12:15 p.m. Students' families have signed permission slips to allow media photography. The event runs from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Posted On: 05-16-2013 11:05 AM

Volume: 45 Number: 179