Writing for Social Change

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Overview

Program Categories:

United States

Program Location:

Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota

Semester(s) offered:

Fall Semester

Program Start/End Dates:

September 6, 2011 - December 16, 2011

Other Program Dates:

Program break dates are November 24th and 25th, 2011

Program Fees:

Some schools have a different fee structure. Always check with home institution first.
For member school students HECUA invoices the institution either (1) tuition of their home college or (2) $13,100 whichever is less.
The fee for University of Minnesota students is $8,100.
Nonmember students pay $13,900.

Writing for Social Change is based on the longstanding tradition in Western culture of using literature as a tool for social critique, as a means of calling for social change and justice, and as a tool for social transformation. The program combines traditional methods of literary and cultural analysis with creative writing workshops in fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction, and makes use of HECUA’s approach to interdisciplinary, reflective critique. The program explores the ways creative writers and literature impact communities, and examines the role creative writers and literature play in addressing pressing social issues. Writing for Social Change combines critical, analytical seminars, creative writing workshops, field study, and a professional internship with a Twin Cities nonprofit, literary arts organization, or K-12 school in need of reading/writing tutors, to give students an integrated, experiential learning opportunity.

Field Study

Writing for Social Change meets at the Textile Center of Minnesota on University Ave. It's easy enough to bike or bus to, but given that University is undergoing major construction for the new LightRail Transit System line, things are about to get messy. The Textile Center, very close to the University of Minnesota-Minneapolis campus, represents and supports fiber artists working in all forms of textile media including weaving, quilting, knitting, sewing, needlework, lace making, basketry and beading. HECUA student writers find inspiration among the colorful fabrics, and friendly artists sharing the space. Prospect Park is nearby for lunch breaks and is home to the Witch's Hat Water Tower made famous by Bob Dylan's song, All Along the Watchtower. Throughout the semester students do a great deal of writing and thinking at the Textile Center; however, much of the program is designed to introduce a number of local authors, poets, and performers. Meetings with these folks happens all around the Twin Cities.

Scheduled to take part in the program this year is:

Barrie Jean Borich, author of My Lesbian Husband, winner of the American Library Association Stonewall Book Award
Anton Jones, playwright and activist and co-founder of the Unit Collective to discuss writing for the stage
Local poet, Heid Erdrich, author of four published poetry collections and co-owner of Birchbark Books in Minneapolis
Deborah Keenan, Hamline Professor, Milkweed editor, and winner of the 2008 MN Book Award for poetry
Patricia Francisco, author of the powerful book TELLING: A Memoir of Rape and Recovery, for which she was awarded a MN Book Award, a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship, and a Loft-McKnight Award of Distinction
Artists associated with CHAT, Center for Hmong Arts and Talent
Published poet and author, Ed Bok Lee, son of Korean immigrants, who was a former bartender, phys ed instructor, journalist, and translator, who studied in the U.S., South Korea, Kazakhstan and Russia
Nationally renowned slam poet champions, Miles Walser and Michael Lee

Additional excursions allow students to:

Create hand-made journals and chapbooks with the guidance of leading local bookmakers at Minnesota Center for Book Arts
Discover national and International public art projects that use the written word as the foundation for reshaping public spaces at Forecast Public Art
Walk through St Paul neighborhoods with artist-in-resident Marcus Young and read poetry written by the city's residents engraved into thesidewalk
Discuss the writing life with a myriad of local poets, playwrights, storytellers, and novelists with the Twin Cities leaders in the Twin Cities literary community
Attend readings in various centers for writing including the Loft Literary Center and libraries throughout the Twin Cities
Go on an Independent Bookstore Scavenger Hunt where you discover hot spots for reading and writing that help create a thriving literary culture in neighborhoods throughout Minneapolis and St Paul
Learn about the business of writing from published authors who will advise you about what opportunities to get published and create new work at residencies locally and nationally

Example Internships

The following provides detailed information on internships that have been available most recently. Sites often change in response to the needs of local organizations and the specific interests of students participating in the program where possible.

Central High School Touring Theater

Located in the black box in the basement of Saint Paul’s Central High School, CTT creates a safe, welcoming and collaborative environment where students have the opportunity to honestly engage in dialogue about social zones that may not be familiar or comfortable to them. Through the theatrical process of character development, students allow themselves to step into someone else’s shoes and gain a better understanding of experiences that may differ from their own. The two City Arts interns this semester worked in the black box theater with teacher Jan Mandel. They participated in and led theatre workshops and writing workshops and accompanied students in local performances and teaching workshops.

Website Link:

http://thecenter.spps.org/Central_Touring_Theatre.html

Coffee House Press

The mission of Coffee House Press is to publish exciting, vital, and enduring authors of our time; to delight and inspire readers; to contribute to the cultural life of our community; and to enrich our literary heritage. By building on the best traditions of publishing and the book arts, they produce books that celebrate imagination, innovation in the craft of writing, and the many authentic voices of the American experience. The Writing for Social Change student was an editorial intern. She read manuscript submissions and wrote reader reports for the editor. She also conducted research on potential foreign language books for acquisition and translation.

Website Link:

http://www.coffeehousepress.org/

Headwaters Foundation for Justice

The Headwaters Foundation for Justice based in Minneapolis is a regional leader in supporting community. Since their inception in 1985, they have distributed more than $8 million in grants to community nonprofit organizations committed to social justice. The Writing for Social Change student worked with the development and communications department at Headwaters. She wrote profile stories about Headwaters grantees for publication in print, Facebook, digital storytelling and e-newsletters, annual reports, brochures and the web site.

Website Link:

http://www.headwatersfoundation.org/

Hennepin County Library

Forty-one libraries. More than 5 million books, CDs and DVDs in 40 world languages. Around 1,750 public computers. Eleven library board members. One great system serving 1.1 million residents of Hennepin County. The library is committed to serving as Hennepin County’s partner in lifelong learning with programs for babies to seniors, new immigrants, small business owners and students of all ages. The Writing for Social Change student worked in the Bindery and Interlibrary Loan departments. She repaired book covers and pages and managed periodical preparation for a commercial bindery. She also worked to organize archived sheet music and in database cataloguing.

Website Link:

http://www.hclib.org/

Kulture Klub Collaborative

Kulture Klub Collaborative is an independent arts organization that brings together artists and homeless teens at a crisis drop-in center located in downtown Minneapolis. It is their belief that artists are powerful models for bridging survival with inspiration. Through art-making workshops, open mics, cultural presentations, and group outings, homeless teens develop their creative expression, receive exposure to artistic excellence, and interact with a group of peers, supportive adults, and diverse social communities. The Writing for Social Change student led writing workshops for youth in the drop in center, helped them to write artist statements for their work, and assisted with the general management of the center.

Website Link:

http://www.kultureklub.org/

MinnPost

MinnPost is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, whose mission is to cover news that matters, raising the level of discussion and improving the quality of life and democracy in Minnesota. They provide news and analysis Monday through Friday, based on reporting by professional journalists, most of whom have decades of experience in the Twin Cities media. The Writing for Social Change student wrote online articles for MinnPost. His writing ranged from articles on an Anarchist book club, to a Garrison Keillor reading, to an opinion piece on WikiLeaks.

Website Link:

http://www.minnpost.com/

Pangaea World Theater

Pangea World Theater illuminates the human condition, celebrates cultural differences, and promotes human rights by creating and presenting international, multi-disciplinary theater. Pangaea World Theater was founded in 1995 with a vision of bringing people from different backgrounds and traditions together through theater. Pangaea explores and creates literature that crosses boundaries and traditions, and engages in an inter-cultural and inter-disciplinary process that addresses themes such as human rights, immigration, political repression, race relations, freedom and cross-cultural expression. The Writing for Social Change students sent out weekly e-newsletters about upcoming shows, designed promotion materials, attended shows, updated the website, took photos at events, and attended board meetings, staff meetings, and production meetings.

Website Link:

http://pangeaworldtheater.org/

Plymouth Christian Youth Center

The Mission of PCYC is to enrich the skills, prospects and spirit of North Minneapolis area youth and adults, in partnership with families and communities. Youth, adults, families and communities come together to turn back the tides of poverty and violence, embracing hope, compassion and the reality of a better world. The Writing for Social Change student worked as the Media Intern. He maintained and edited the web page, created and maintained their Facebook and YouTube pages, gathered students stories, photographs and videos to populate these sites, and encouraged staff and teachers to use these sources. He also acted as a teaching assistant in some English classes.

Website Link:

http://pcyc-mpls.org/

Rainbow Rumpus

Rainbow Rumpus publishes an online magazine for youth with lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender parents. Over 250 households a day visit the award-winning website. They decrease the isolation of and work to empower the over 9 million youth with LGBT parents who live in the United States. The Writing for Social Change student wrote and contributed to articles for the website and planned events for GLBT families.

Website Link:

http://www.rainbowrumpus.org/

Social Venture Partners of MN

SVP MN is one of 26 chapters of Social Venture Partners International, an international network of individuals who passionately care about making the world a better place. SVP MN is an engaged philanthropy organization that uses the money and professional expertise of its members to promote philanthropy and improve the lives of ‘at risk’ youth through working with social entrepreneurs. The Writing for Social Change Student scheduled, conducted, transcribed, and wrote creative pieces about investees and partners. She also wrote an investee story for the annual report, wrote newsletter stories, attended meetings and took minutes, and drafted a social media strategy for the organization.

Website Link:

http://svpmn.org/

Twin Cities Daily Planet

The Twin Cities Daily Planet, a project of the Twin Cities Media Alliance, is a community newswire and syndication service showcasing the best work of the neighborhood and community press, as well as work by independent journalists and the voices of engaged citizens. The Writing for Social Change students worked as citizen reporters. Together they published over 20 articles and received attention from local officials on their coverage of important local stories such as voting trends in the Latino community and funding for new early education initiatives in the Frogtown neighborhood of Saint Paul.

Website Link:

http://www.tcdailyplanet.net/

The Loft Literary Center

Incorporated in 1975 in a space above a Minneapolis bookstore, The Loft Literary Center has grown to become the nation’s largest and most comprehensive literary center. It is located in the award-winning Open Book literary arts building in Minneapolis, Minnesota, at the heart of one of the most literate and book-friendly regions in the country. The Loft Literary Center is a nonprofit arts organization offering services for readers and writers at every level. From novels to children’s literature, from playwriting to poetry, from spoken word to memoir, there’s something for everyone at the Loft. Programs include readings by acclaimed local and national authors, classes, weekend genre conferences, competitions and grants, open groups, writers’ studios, and much more. The Writing for Social Change Student worked with the Access Grant to reach out to New Americans and to the disabled community and build partnerships that will increase access to Loft programming for these target audiences currently underrepresented in their programming.

Website Link:

https://www.loft.org/

zAmya Theater Project

zAmya Theater Project creates community-based theater to increase awareness and understanding of homelessness, inspiring people to end it. Theater workshops are designed to bring housed and those experiencing homelessness together and using theatrical exercises and story sharing, a play is crafted. Those who choose to continue from the workshops can become actors or extras for the performance. The Writing for Social Change student recruited actors, helped to plan rehearsals, gave input on the script, publicized the production and contributed to grant proposals.

Website Link:

http://www.ststephensmpls.org/zamya.htm

Additional Internship Sites:

Bedlam Theatre

Intermedia Arts & SASE Program

Milkweed Editions

MN Spoken Word Association

MN Women's Press

Need Magazine

The Lab, St. Paul Public Schools

Eligibility & Coursework

Documentation & Syllabus Examples:

WSC 2011 Syllabus .pdf

Prerequisites/Eligibility:

The program serves students from a variety of academic backgrounds who have a particular interest in writing, and who want to explore how they can use their craft to help create the kind of change they want to see in the world. The course will focus on the development of each student writers’ craft and “voice,” and on the notion that claiming one’s own voice is an important step toward self-empowerment and actualization.

Students who apply must have completed one academic year in a four-year degree-seeking program, and hold a GPA of 2.5 or higher (2.0 GPA students are still welcome to apply, but will receive extra scrutiny).

Courses:

Reading for Social Change: Literature in Political, Social, and Historical Contexts
Writing for Social Change: A Creative Writing Workshop in Fiction, Poetry, and Creative Nonfiction
Internship Placement and Seminar

Total: 4 course credits / 16 credit hours
The courses are taken as an integrated whole and provide the equivalent of a semester's worth of credit, i.e. 4 course credits, 16 semester hours or 27 trimester credits. This program is full-time with classes two days a week (10am to 3pm) and around 20 hours weekly in an internship.

Credits

Receive Credits That Count

Like with most off-campus study programs, students need to work directly with their home institution to receive credit for participation in a HECUA program. It's important to note that HECUA's courses offer upper-level division credits. It's common to be awarded general education ("gen ed") credits, but most students also obtain significant Major and Minor credits as well. To assist with the process of negotiating credits with advisors and registrars on campus, HECUA has compiled information on how recent participants of Writing for Social Change worked to receive credit from their respective schools. The following examples of credit earned are solely those that students have reported to HECUA.

Please contact HECUA's Director of Programs, Sarah Pradt, for more information on credit approval and for help with your individual situation.

Major and/or Minor Credit Students Have Received

• Anthropology
• Communication Studies
• Cultural Studies
• English
• Global Studies
• Individualized Studies
• Journalism
• Justice and Peace Studies
• Philosophy
• Political Science
• Social Justice
• Sociology
• Theatre
• Youth Studies

Keep in mind that credit approval may be possible in other Major or Minor areas that HECUA is not yet aware of.

Previous Students' Methods for Credit Approval

• Scheduled meetings with the head of Major/Minor department to go through course description (with program syllabus)
• Saved all documentation of course work (syllabus, papers, projects) to show to Major/Minor department head
• Spoke with academic advisor about credit approval process
• Spoke with previous professor
• Showed coursework and internship work to Major/Minor department and academic advisor
• Obtained paperwork from Office of the Registrar and received signatures of credit approval from Academic Advisor or Department Head
• Received approval for general upper level credits from academic advisor
• Spoke with HECUA board representative
• Got approval for general credit transfer then petitioned for approval in specific Major/Minor with completed coursework and internship work

Student Reflections

Sacha Chandavong, a Global Studies major at the University of Minnesota, and current participant in the fall 2011 Writing for Social Change (WSC) program, has begun a unique and clever public art project as part of her HECUA experience. She invites anyone and everyone to take a look at the beginnings of her online photography project and PARTICIPATE. Public Art WSC is an expression of words and imagery that come together to ask deeper questions about the intersections of art, life, and hope.

"My semester of Writing for Social Change the highlight of my college experience, and one of the best things I've ever done for myself."
Kaitlin Muth, Carleton College

“The classroom atmosphere is set for great and profound learning experiences. The semester allowed for personal, professional, and academic growth.”
Jared, Saint Mary University of Minnesota

“I felt freedom of exploration and creativity in this classroom.”
James, College of St. Scholastica

“HECUA creates an authentic learning environment. Classroom discussions will leave you incredibly hungry for more knowledge, but satiated at the same time!”
Melissa, Augsburg College

“Everyone in the program works hard to get here, which automatically connects us deeply.”
Noah, Hamline University

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