Rose Hill Writing Center Moves to New State-of-the-Art Space
The Rose Hill Writing Center, which offers free writing assistance to undergraduate and graduate students in all majors and programs, opened its doors Feb. 11 in a bigger, brighter, and more technologically advanced room on the first floor of the Walsh Family Library.
The new state-of-the-art facility features several spacious work stations with brand-new computers, including one free-standing station that can be raised and lowered to accommodate students in wheelchairs. A large conference table sits under elegant light fixtures, and a wall-mounted LCD screen will now allow for videoconferencing with speakers and scholars around the world as well as real-time collaborations with the Lincoln Center Writing Center.
Anna Beskin, a doctoral candidate in English and director of the Rose Hill Writing Center, says that the new space demonstrates Fordham’s commitment to helping students of all levels become stronger writers. “It’s a huge sign of support for what we do at the Writing Center.”
To design and build the new Writing Center, Rose Hill Writing Director Moshe Gold of the English department worked with department chair Glenn Hendler, director of University Libraries Linda LoSchiavo, a team from Facilities Management led by Rory Madden, deans John Harrington and Michael Latham, and architect Joel Napach of the Napach Design Group. Their shared goal was to design a space that would create a more cohesive experience for students working on research and writing.
This cohesion is reflected in the new space’s seamless visual integration into the existing library structure, with matching wood tones, paint colors, and signage. Walsh Library has also dedicated a portion of its entrance lobby as a waiting area for students visiting the Center, which is expected to be more in demand than ever given its upgraded facilities and new location.
The Writing Center’s move from the fifth floor of Dealy Hall to a space adjacent to the library’s reference room underscores the interconnectedness of good research with strong writing, of information literacy with the quest for eloquentia perfecta, or “perfect eloquence” in speaking and writing, that is one of Fordham’s pedagogical hallmarks. The resources that students need for a wide range of projects—from freshman composition essays and longer research papers to statements of purpose for graduate school applications—exist just outside the writing center’s doors.
“Once students work with a tutor and realize they have more work to do,” said Beskin, “they can see a reference librarian, ask questions, or search for books; they are already in the right space.”
Please visit the Writing Center website for writing resources, information about upcoming workshops, or to make an appointment.
This article was based on a draft written by Anna Beskin, and contains some language from an article in Fordham News by Nina Heidig. Photos by Martine Stern and Delia Brengel.