Stan State Writing Center brings regional conference to the Central Valley

Writing center professionals from more than a dozen institutions gathered at Stan State Event Center for the annual Northern California Writing Centers Association (NCWCA) conference, bringing the event to the Central Valley for the first time in recent memory.

Attendees came from four-year universities, community colleges and several high schools across Northern California and Nevada. The conference, themed “Writing epiCenters: Where Movement Begins,” featured sessions on accessibility, multilingual support, physical space and the role writing centers play on their campuses.

Maria Camarena, Stan State writing center director and English faculty member, said she and associate director Jacqueline Hollcraft started pursuing the opportunity to host at last year’s NCWCA gathering in Reno.

“I’m very proud of this,” Camarena said. “It’s been a journey to get here. We’ve been planning for more than a year to get here for Saturday.”

The conference rotates annually among institutions across the region. Recent hosts include the University of Nevada, Reno, Jessup University and UC Merced. Camarena said she and Hollcraft put their names in shortly after stepping into their director roles.

Planning the event required months of preparation, including budgeting, securing facilities, coordinating catering, building a website and producing printed materials.

“It’s been a lot, but we work well together, and so it’s been a very fun and rewarding experience,” Hollcraft said.

The conference drew about 140 to 150 attendees, a turnout that Hollcraft said brought the conference back in line to pre-pandemic levels.

“Since COVID, conferences in general have struggled to rev up again,” she said. “It’s nice to see people coming out, engaging, networking and working to learn more about writing centers practices together.”

Presenters traveled from across the state and beyond. Institutions represented included UC Davis, UC Merced, the University of Nevada, Reno, Sonoma State University, San Jose State University, CSU Sacramento, CSU Monterey Bay, San Joaquin Delta College, Clovis Community College, Napa Valley College and Woodland Community College, among others.

The keynote address was delivered by Dr. Sherwin Sales, writing center director at CSU Dominguez Hills. Sales drew on student work from his classes, his experience as a Pacific Islander and Filipino professional navigating academia and a session at his center where a student arrived with racially charged writing.

“If students can trust you to tell them where to put a comma,” Sales said, “then they can trust that a critical dialogue about language is beneficial for a session.”

Stan State tutors were among those presenting. Graduate student Emily Peña (Graduate, Writing Studies) received a SERSCA grant to help coordinate the event and presented research strategies for multilingual writers.

“I’m also helping, thanks to receiving a SERSCA grant, to put on the conference,” Peña said. “Because of all of those things, I just thought that it would be amazing to be able to have this conference to present at.”

Guadalupe Castañeda-Zavala (Graduate, Writing Studies), a graduate student and tutor since fall 2024, co-presented on how a writing center’s physical space shapes students’ sense of welcome as they walk through the door.

“I am not their teacher, nor am I there to take over their paper and tell them what to do,” Castañeda-Zavala said. “I am their peer, and I am there to support them in finding and developing strategies that will help them express their ideas in their own voice.”

Hollcraft said the day offers students more than just presentations, pointing to its value for tutors early in their careers.

“It’s getting your professional package started early,” Hollcraft said. “And it’s just a good opportunity to learn more and to network and meet people from other schools.”

English department representatives were on hand to speak with students from other institutions, including community college students considering transfer. Hollcraft said getting those students to campus was part of the plan from the start.

Camarena said she does not expect the writing center to host again anytime soon, adding that this year’s conference is something the program can reflect on.

“I hope our tutors, more importantly, get a lot from this,” Camarena said. “Not only for their CV, but also that experience and perspective on what it’s like to put on a conference.”

Sales ended his keynote with a similar message.

“If we didn’t believe that, at the writing center, we could help students think more critically about language, I wouldn’t be saying it,” Sales said. “We do and have that responsibility.”