CALL FOR PROPOSALS

South Central Writing Centers Association Conference 2027

“(Re)Centering Writing Center Identities and Purpose” 

Hosted by the University of North Texas’s Writing Center, Denton, TX

Thursday, March 4 – Saturday, March 6, 2027

 

Conference Theme: 

As we close the book on 2026 and begin a new chapter in 2027, American institutions of higher education are actively responding to a number of external and internal pressures in an attempt to redefine and characterize the value of higher education while preserving its transformative mission. Writing Centers within these universities are facing their own kind of pressure. The phenomena affecting Writing Centers today include the following pressures: 

• • • Writing Centers exist now in a post-AI world that threatens the value of human peer guidance and questions whether LLMs are the future of tutoring; 
    • Global financial crises as well as the anxiety surrounding student debt have forced members of American society to question the ROI on higher education – with many concluding that pursuing higher education is unnecessary and impractical; 
    • The downsizing and reorganization of the Department of Education as well as revision of state and federal funding formulas have resulted in budget crises at almost every university that force budget lines to be reconsidered or reduced;
    • The looming “enrollment cliff” brought about by lowered birth rates threatens a statistical decrease in new student enrollment numbers, and students who do enroll are dropping out more and more frequently;
    • Finally, the proliferation of social media as well as the abundance of digital and physical ephemera creates undue pressure to define oneself uniquely in order to stand out in a sea of physical and digital promotion.

Given these pressures affecting institutions of higher education and the Writing Centers housed within them, the 2027 South-Central Writing Center Association conference will meet these challenges directly by asking administrators and staff to rethink, rework, (re)define, and share innovations they have implemented that reaffirm the identity and value of Writing Center services to university stakeholders. 

The SCWCA invites proposals for presentations or proposed panel series that consider these – and similar – pressure points and strategies that explore:

• • • If, and how, Writing Center administrators and staff have begun modifying their offered services to meet the changing needs of current students within a post-AI world;
    • What revisions and advancements have been developed in tutor training curriculum and center oversight that reassert the value of human, peer guidance in a post-AI world OR that incorporate the ethical use of AI in Writing Center practice;
    • What innovations in digital and physical promotion have been implemented to increase visibility and usage;
    • Whether or not tutor and staff recruitment procedures have been modified and the results of those revisions;
    • Any potential collaborations with internal and external partners or units have been proposed or implemented to reach previously unreached student or nonstudent populations;
    • How the process of quantitative, qualitative, and anecdotal data collection can (or has) been optimized to justify university budget allocations for Writing Center services;
    • Considerations of Writing Center identity and ethos in light of our current sociopolitical environment and what ought to change and – vitally – what should remain unchanged as it relates to a Writing Centers’ values and mission.

We welcome submissions from all Writing Center professionals, including both undergraduate and graduate students as well as faculty and staff affiliated with Writing Center theory and practice. Join us in this invaluable opportunity to share strategies and ideas that meet the challenges of our current time. 

 

Submission Guidelines:

• • • Proposal Guidelines: Proposals should include a title and abstract (250-300 words)
    • Submission Deadline: December 15, 2026
    • Where to Submit: 

• •  

• • • Notification of Acceptance: Presenters will be notified of acceptance by the week of January 18, 2027.

 

Session Formats:

• • • Traditional Presentations (Individual or Co-Presentations)

-- Each panel will include 2-3 presenters discussing a related theme.

-- Each presentation will be 15 minutes, followed by a 10 minute Q&A. 

-- Visual components are welcome but not required. 

 

For more information, reach out to Mary.Lutze@unt.edu, Emma.Fleckenstein@unt.edu, or WritingCenter@unt.edu. 

 

We look forward to reviewing your proposals!