How can I get help?

Because of our limited resources, we can only offer each student one appointment (one hour) per week.

You can walk in for assistance with your writing needs without an appointment during the Writing Center’s hours of operation; however, the availability of assistance depends on the availability of a tutor. If all tutors are working with students, you may have to wait or come back another time.

Therefore, we strongly encourage you to schedule an appointment ahead of time. You can sign up for tutoring by coming to the writing center during our hours of operation or by e-mailing writing@sunyrockland.edu or calling us (845-574-4790).

You do not need your teacher’s permission to use the writing center, nor are you required to report to your teacher that you have used our service. However, it’s a good idea to keep your teacher informed of the effort you’re making in improving your writing skills outside the classroom.

Many students think that it costs them extra money to use our service, but this is not true! We offer free service to our students and the community at large.

Types of Service the Writing Center Offers

We provide individualized assistance to students in helping them:

• Understand a writing assignment
• Brainstorm for an essay outline
• Proofread the rough draft of an essay
• Enhance skills in grammar and correct usage
• Strengthen research skills

We give personal support to our faculty and can assist them in:

• Drafting a writing assignment
• Revising an existing writing assignment
• Finding ways to incorporate writing into their curriculum

Types of Services the Writing Center DOES NOT offer

• We do not proofread a student’s paper;
• We do not do a re-write for a student.
• We do not produce A papers.
• We do not help students with take home exams without specific instructions from the professor.

We hope that students will understand that they may not leave the Writing Center with their papers totally “fixed” or “corrected” because we cannot do that for them. We can help them learn how to do that on their own, and will work with them for as many visits as they’d like. Since writing is complex, it is up to a student to learn how to be a writer. Further, we make sure not to take their paper and do things for them because those papers are going to be assessed by their professors. It’s important that the faculty have confidence in us and the service we offer, that they know when students come, they get help, but not a ghost rewrite. (Source: Nick Carbone, Colorado State University)