Program in Writing and Rhetoric Shared Policies and UW Campus Resources

Program in Writing and Rhetoric Shared Policies and UW Campus Resources 

Updated Autumn 2025 

This document is an addendum to all PWR syllabi (English 109, 110, 115, 121, 131, 182, 281, 282, 381, 382) that includes updated policies and university guidance as well as key campus resources. The “Reaching Out” and “Religious Accommodations Policy” are required on all syllabi. We also think it is important to tell students about research and writing supports on campus and to highlight resources for student safety and well-being. 

Reaching Out  

If you have any concerns about the course or your instructor, please see the instructor about these concerns as soon as possible. If you are not comfortable talking with the instructor or not satisfied with the response that you receive, you may contact the following Program in Writing and Rhetoric staff: Director Stephanie Kerschbaum, kersch@uw.edu, or Associate Director of Writing Programs, Carrie Matthews, crmatthe@uw.edu. If, after speaking with the PWR Director or Associate Director, you are still not satisfied with the response you receive, you may contact English Department Chair, Habiba Ibrahim, hibrahim@uw.edu, (206) 543-2690.  

  

Religious Accommodations Policy  

Washington state law requires that UW develop a policy for accommodation of student absences or significant hardship due to reasons of faith or conscience, or for organized religious activities. The UW’s policy, including more information about how to request an accommodation, is available at Religious Accommodations Policy. Accommodations must be requested within the first two weeks of this course using the Religious Accommodations Request Form. 

  

UW Libraries Research 

This course asks you, among other things, to craft research questions, analyze a diverse range of texts, and engage in meaningful “conversation” across ideas, texts, and situations’ patterns with appropriate citational practices. If you’d like assistance, guidance, or a second opinion in doing so at any point, you can book an appointment with one of the Odegaard Library’s peer research consultants here. 

 

Writing Center Support 

  • CLUE Writing Center: Center for Learning and Undergraduate Enrichment (CLUE) is the UW's largest free tutoring program and offers evening hours.

  • Odegaard Writing and Research Center: The OWRC offers free, one-to-one, 45-minute tutoring sessions for undergraduate, graduate, and professional writers in all fields at the UW. 

 

Academic and Campus Supports 

  • CELE: The Community Engagement & Leadership Education Center provides students with opportunities to develop knowledge and skills needed to build sustainable community partnerships.  

  • Career Center: The UW Career Center offers career counseling and planning, workshops and career fairs, a listing of part-time jobs on and off campus, and much more.  

  • wǝɫǝbʔaltxʷ – Intellectual House: is a longhouse-style facility on the UW Seattle campus. It provides a multi-service learning and gathering space for American Indian and Alaska Native students, faculty and staff, as well as others from various cultures and communities to come together in a welcoming environment to share knowledge. It is located at 4249 Whitman Court. 

  • Q Center: The University of Washington Q Center builds and facilitates queer (gay, lesbian, bisexual, two-spirit, trans, intersex, questioning, same-gender-loving, allies) academic and social community through education, advocacy, and support services to achieve a socially-just campus in which all people are valued.  

  • Counseling Center: UW Counseling Center workshops include a wide range of issues including study skills, thinking about coming out, international students and culture shock, and much more. Check out available resources and workshops at their website. 

  • FIUTS: Foundation for International Understanding through Students: FIUTS is an example of a campus organization that can bring together your social and academic learning. "FIUTS is an independent non-profit organization which provides cross-cultural leadership and social programming for UW's international and globally minded domestic students. FIUTS is local connections and global community!" FIUTS also offers a free international lunch on the last Wednesday of every month. Consult FIUTS' website for a detailed calendar of events and links to many resources. 

  • Health & Wellness: provides support, advocacy, consultation, and education to the University of Washington campus community. Services are free for UW students, faculty, and staff. You can work with advocates on your behalf or on behalf of someone you know. Programs include Alcohol & Drug Consultation and Education, Suicide Intervention, Sexual Assault, Relationship Violence, Stalking and Harassment Advocacy, and Student Care Program. 

  • Any Hungry Husky: This program helps mitigate the social and academic effects of campus food insecurity. By providing students, staff, and faculty with access to shelf-stable, non-perishable goods and community resources at no cost, this initiative aims to lessen the financial burden of purchasing food and supplement nutritional needs. This resource is for everyone in the UW community.  

 

English Department Statement of Values  

The UW English Department aims to help students become more incisive thinkers, effective communicators, and imaginative writers by acknowledging that language and its use is powerful and holds the potential to empower individuals and communities; to provide the means to engage in meaningful conversation and collaboration across differences and with those with whom we disagree; and to offer methods for exploring, understanding, problem solving, and responding to the many pressing collective issues we face in our world—skills that align with and support the University of Washington’s mission to educate “a diverse student body to become responsible global citizens and future leaders through a challenging learning environment informed by cutting-edge scholarship.  

  

As a department, we begin with the conviction that language and texts play crucial roles in the constitution of cultures and communities.  Our disciplinary commitments to the study of language, literature, and culture require of us a willingness to engage openly and critically with questions of power and difference. As such, in our teaching, service, and scholarship we frequently initiate and encourage conversations about topics such as race, immigration, gender, sexuality, and class. These topics are fundamental to the inquiry we pursue.  We are proud of this fact, and we are committed to creating an environment in which our faculty and students can do so confidently and securely, knowing that they have the backing of the department.  

  

Towards that aim, we value the inherent dignity and uniqueness of individuals and communities. We aspire to be a place where human rights are respected and where any of us can seek support. This includes people of all ethnicities, faiths, genders, national origins, political views, and citizenship status; nontheists; LGBTQIA+; those with disabilities; veterans; and anyone who has been targeted, abused, or disenfranchised.  

 

Land Acknowledgement 

University Land Acknowledgment:

  

The University of Washington acknowledges the Coast Salish peoples of this land, the land which touches the shared waters of all tribes and bands within the Suquamish, Tulalip and Muckleshoot nations. Our acknowledgment of the tribes and bands within the Suquamish, Tulalip, and Muckleshoot nations comes from consultation and guidance by the Governor’s Office of Indian Affairs and Federal regulations and policies. In this phrasing we are adhering to tribal sovereignty. 

 

Campus Safety  

  • Call SafeCampus at 206-685-7233 anytime – no matter where you work or study – to anonymously discuss safety and well-being concerns for yourself or others. SafeCampus’s team of caring professionals will provide individualized support, while discussing short- and long-term solutions and connecting you with additional resources when requested.   

  • Husky SafeTrip (206-685-9255) provides safe vehicle escort at night with a uniformed security guard for students, faculty, and staff. 

  • Stay connected in an emergency with UW Alert. Register your mobile number to receive instant notification of campus emergencies via text and voice messaging.  

 

Resources for Undocumented and DACA Students 

  • The Office of Global Affairs This website is updated often and is a key site of information about UW legal services for students and the Immigration Law Clinic, with info from the ACLU and links to city and state resources. 

  • According to UWHR, federal agency personnel cannot enter private spaces, which are defined below: 

  • Public versus private spaces: From College of Arts and Sciences Dean Dianne Harris’s email on Feb.10, 2025: "Private spaces include classrooms, laboratories, campus residences, private offices or any space that is card-access only or restricted to members of the campus community (such as fitness centers). Public spaces of our campus include all outdoor spaces (plazas, walkways, parking lots and garages, sports fields), the campus library, building hallways and open-area study spaces, and lobbies." 

  • The Director of ISS  sent a message to all international students. This is to inform you about the messaging some students have been receiving. 

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