IWCA 2022: An Un-CFP

To submit a proposal, log in to the IWCA members portal. Schedule to follow.

As IWCA members share their experiences in centers across the globe and within different types of institutions, we are increasingly mindful that writing center practitioners must more directly engage with questions about the myriad nature of writing center work, oversight, spaces, human labor, research, and the language we use to define our practices and our relationships as well as the practices themselves. 

Rather than following the traditional route of theming the annual conference, we propose an Un-CFP, which invites members to present on the issues and dialogues at the center of their centers, loosely categorized as follows:

  • Labor and Institutional Oversight
  • Language, Literacy, and Linguistic Justice
  • Pedagogy and Training
  • History
  • Research and Methods of Inquiry
  • Theory
  • Politics, Power, and Relationships
  • Anti-oppressive Frameworks that sustain resistance to racism, colonialism, linguicism, ableism, homophobia, transphobia, xenophobia, and Islamophobia 

When and Where

IWCA 2022 will be held from October 26-29, 2022, in Vancouver, BC, Canada. All conference events will be held in the Sheraton Wall Centre, where a book of rooms has been reserved at a rate of $209.00 CAD (currently 167.11 USD).  

We continue to monitor the COVID situation and its impacts on travel and in-person gatherings, and we will communicate any changes to our plans as needed. 

Session Formats

Presentations should fit with one of the following session formats:

  • 75-minute Panel Presentation: 3 to 4 presentations of 15-20 minutes each on a specific theme or question.
  • Individual Presentation: 15–20-minute presentation (that will be combined into a 75-minute panel by the program chair).
  • 75-minute Workshop: A participatory session that engages attendees in active learning.
  • 75-minute Roundtable Discussion: 15 minutes of introductory framing by the leader(s), followed by a facilitated discussion among attendees.
  • 75-minute Special Interest Group: Strategic conversations led by colleagues who have similar interests, institutional settings, or identities.
  • Ignite Presentation: A 5-minute presentation composed of 20 images each lasting 15 seconds. This format is especially conducive for sharing tutoring or teaching techniques.
  • Poster Presentation: A research-fair style presentation in which the presenter(s) create a poster to shape their discussion with attendees.
  • Works-in-Progress: Roundtable discussions where presenters briefly (5-10 minutes) discuss one of their current (in progress) writing center research projects and then receive feedback.

Proposal Process

Submit a 100-word abstract (to appear in the conference program) and a 300-word description (to help with the review process) of your proposed session at www.iwcamembers.org. Proposers will also be asked to include a no more than 100-word justification for their rationale for their session.

Proposal Review Criteria

Proposals will be reviewed based on four (4) criteria: 

  1. Grounding in a wider network of knowledge, such as previous scholarship or a scholarly or community tradition of practice and values. 
  2. Transferability or generalizability to a writing center audience. While the work need not be appropriate for all sites and purposes, the proposal should demonstrate how specific members of our community might employ, extend, respond to, etc. presented practices, ideas, and studies within their contexts. 
  3. Respect for the diversity of people, places, and values within our community. 
  4. Purpose of proposed session clearly articulated. 

Anticipated Timeline

May 15, 2022: Proposals Due

May 15-31 2022: Proposal Reviewed

June 2022: Notifications Sent

July 15, 2022: Accept Invitation to Present and Register 

To submit a proposal, log in to the IWCA members portal (https://www.iwcamembers.org).

Questions? Contact Shareen Grogan, IWCA 2022 Conference Chair

shareen.grogan@umontana.edu