Here to make students more effective writers and speakers

“The Writing and Speaking Initiative plays a central role in all educational experiences at our University. The ability to communicate effectively makes all of our graduates an indispensable part of our nation’s future success.” – President Brian Sandoval

"The goal of the Writing and Speaking Initiative is to ensure that the ability to write and speak effectively is a hallmark of every University of Nevada Reno, graduate.” - Marc Johnson, Former University President

To reach that important goal, our students are given multiple formative and challenging opportunities to improve their writing, speaking and communicating from their introductory Core Writing and Basic Communication courses throughout undergraduate coursework in every major. Likewise, faculty across the disciplines support our graduate and professional students in becoming excellent writers and speakers.

The initiative responds to evidence that strong writing and speaking skills are vital to a student’s academic success as well as their career prospects. Well-designed writing and speaking assignments are high-impact teaching tools that deepen students’ learning in all disciplines (AAC&U’s “High-Impact Practices”). National surveys repeatedly indicate that employers rank the ability to communicate effectively among the top skills they seek in a new employee (AAC&U’s “How College Contributes to Workforce Success: Employer Views on What Matters Most,” "Why Mastering Writing Skills Can Help Future Proof Your Career").

Supporting programs

The goals of the University's Writing and Speaking Initiative are carried out by several outstanding University programs.

Core Writing

Core Writing offers a variety of courses designed to meet students’ needs as they adjust to the writing demands of college and beyond. Core Writing classes aim to give students the knowledge and experience to tailor their writing to different audiences and contexts. First-semester courses - English 100I, 101 and 113 - build foundational knowledge of audience and genre. Second-semester offerings - English 102 and 114 - engage students with a research topic and offer experience with multimodal communication.

COM 101: Public Speaking

Basic communication course COM 101 develops students' skills in researching, organizing, developing, and delivering speeches with an emphasis on adapting to diverse audiences and feedback. Students present impromptu and extemporaneous speeches, learn fundamental techniques for using visual aids, and conduct peer evaluations of other students' speeches.

University Writing and Speaking Center

The University Writing and Speaking Center offers free writing consultations to all undergraduate and graduate students for academic, creative, career, business and personal writing as well as speeches and presentations. Consultants are undergraduate and graduate students from a range of academic disciplines. Our consultants help all stages of the writing process, including brainstorming and development, planning and drafting, revising and editing. We offer a space where all students are valued as writers and critical thinkers. During consultations, students are actively engaged in discussion and activity with their project.

Writing & Speaking Initiative Fellows Program

The Writing & Speaking Initiative Fellows Program brings trained undergraduate peer consultants and faculty together in a collaborative effort to support student learning. Offering peer consulting within major coursework, fellows work closely with instructors and students on writing or presentation projects in disciplinary course settings.

The Writing and Speaking in the Disciplines (WSID) Program

The Writing and Speaking in the Disciplines (WSID) Program supports faculty as they teach writing and speaking in all disciplines. The program is built on the belief that writing and speaking are foundational tools for deepening learning and producing flexible and effective writers and communicators. WSID collaborates with faculty from all disciplines – anthropology, engineering, public health, etc. – to integrate writing and speaking assignments and activities across the curriculum, creating a culture of writing and communication that enables students to succeed in and beyond the University.

Contact us

For more information, or to find resources to support students or faculty to reach the goals of the Writing & Speaking Initiative, please reach out to Writing & Speaking Initiative Director Elisabeth Miller at elisabethmiller@unr.edu.