PROPOSAL: PROFESSIONAL WRITING PROGRAM Adrienne Moncrief

Table of Contents  Introduction/Summary  Need  Goal  Objectives  Purpose  Budget  Comparisons  Conclusion

Introduction/Summary  The Professional Writing program at Miami University is new (2011) and full of potential  PW major, writing & rhetoric minor  Three tracks within the PW major, plus a self- designed track  Calls for different classes, and many overlap

 Problem  Classes are not offered often  Not enough full-time professors; many are graduate students or part-time visiting professors  Solution  Hire more professors to accommodate the growing number of students in the program

Need  As of May 2013, 91 students were enrolled in the Professional Writing major, 65 for the writing & rhetoric minor  17% of classes taught by 7 tenure-line, full-time professors (5 retired last year)  83% of classes taught by visiting assistant professors, graduate students or part-time faculty members

Goal  To hire five full-time faculty to teach upper-level production courses, client-based projects and courses & online and digital media courses  To offer more classes to improve the selection variety and availability for students

 44 Professional Writing courses  19 ENG courses offered Fall 2013 (30 total)  13 JRN, IMS, and COM courses offered (14 total)

Objectives  Spread the word about our search for tenure-line positions  Partner with other programs in search of faculty (AIMS)  Interview applicants  Narrow down the finalists  Approval from the Dean

Purpose  To let students have the opportunity to work with tenure-line faculty  Career development and preparation  Long-term  To offer more classes each semester to help students meet the outcomes in their major

Budget  $77,288 – average salary for English literature/language tenure-line faculty  5 new hires  $368,440 / year

Comparisons  Michigan State University  70 faculty in the Writing Rhetoric and American Cultures department  Purdue University  60 faculty in English Department, with 9 in particular to Rhetoric and Composition  Uniqueness of the major will draw professors to Miami

Conclusion  The PW program needs to hire more tenure-line professors  To strengthen the growing program  To accommodate students’ needs  To replace the 5 retired faculty members from last year  The PW is a popular program with students, employers and hopefully future faculty  Employing more long-term faculty will sustain the program and the quality of learning for students