Writing Central

a journalism student studies for an exam

Writing is a skill that transcends academic and professional disciplines.

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A Resource for All

Writing Central is a resource for the entire campus community. Whether you’re a freshman in your first composition class, a seasoned writer, or working on an article for publication, everyone can benefit from collaboration during the writing process. In addition to its presence on PBA’s main campus, you can also take part in synchronous online appointments.

When you’re able to write effectively and communicate through the written word in a compelling way, you’ll set yourself apart no matter what profession you’re planning to enter. Empowering you with this important skill is what PBA’s Writing Central is all about.

Writing Central staff consists of student coaches who enthusiastically provide support and guidance. Our coaches love to assist writers achieve the skills necessary to express themselves clearly and successfully at the University and beyond. They’re committed to helping strengthen your ideas, streamline your thoughts and build skills for future assignments no matter what stage you may be in the writing process.

  • Brainstorming ideas
  • Creating an outline
  • Writing a first draft
  • Revising
  • Proofreading

Frequently Asked Questions

No. You can always come to Writing Central anytime it’s open. We accept walk-in appointments.
However, if you have a specific time frame you need to meet, it’s a good idea to make an appointment. When you walk in, you might have to wait to see a coach; when you have an appointment, that time belongs to you.

Though we do accept in-person walk-ins, we recommend making an appointment to guarantee a time slot. Before you can make an in-person or online appointment, please register in our schedule system, WCONLINE. You must use your PBA email to register.

Create a Password & Login
As you complete the registration, you’ll be asked to create a password. This password is not related to your PBA password; it can be any combination of 5 letters and/or numbers. This password does not change unless you change it.

Select Availability
After you log in, select an available date, time, and writing coach for your appointment. All WHITE boxes are available for appointments. You can schedule up to two 30-minute appointments per day, and those can be back-to-back to create an hour-long appointment.

After you click on the available appointment, a pop-up screen will appear, asking you to let the writing coach know a little about what you want to work on. Click “Create Appointment”.

Canceling Appointments
If you cannot attend your appointment, please cancel it. The system will permit you to cancel up to 30 minutes before your appointment. To cancel, log in to the schedule and click on your appointment. Click the CANCEL button at the bottom of the pop-up and your appointment is canceled.

Making an Online Appointment
To make an ONLINE APPOINTMENT be sure to select “Yes. Schedule Online appointment” when creating your session.

About 10 minutes before your appointment time, you should log into the schedule where you made your appointment.

You should have: the document you want to work on in an electronic file that is easily accessible and a computer with an adequate Internet connection that also has a working microphone and speaker. Once you enter your online session on WCONLINE, your coach may send you a separate Zoom link, since Zoom supports screenshare.

Contact
If you have any difficulty connecting to your session, contact us at awe@pba.edu.

Make an Appointment

You should bring the prompt and/or rubric for your assignment so your writing coach can refer to it when looking at your work. You can bring your paper as a hard copy, on a flash drive, or you can use an Writing Central computer to pull up the assignment from your email or drop box. Bring any other materials necessary to understand your assignment and complete your goals for the session.

Your coach will begin by asking you about the class and the assignment. Your coach will then talk with you about your goals for the session and you’ll decide what you want to focus on. For the rest of the session, you and your coach will work collaboratively to both improve the project you’re working on and to improve your writing skills overall.

We can assist you with this area. We are not an editing service where you simply drop off your paper for someone else to correct; however, we work collaboratively with clients. We can help you to polish and finish your paper.

Absolutely! We can assist with APA, MLA, and Turabian formatting. We encourage clients to utilize resources available at Writing Central such as tip sheets and style guides to find the answers to your formatting questions.

Yes! We can show you how to take your research and integrate it into your paper properly and avoid plagiarism in the process.

Read the coach bios. Find someone who shares a related major or hobby if possible. If you do not feel you connect well with the coach you chose, you can always select a different coach for your next session.

You can find out information about that HERE.

When you are required to attend a Writing Central session for a specific assignment, let your coach know right away. We have a report form we can complete for you, and you can send that to your professor. Please note that we cannot simply sign a form for you without completing the session.

We can help you with brainstorming! Bring your assignment prompt Writing Central. We can work collaboratively to figure out what interests you and what you could write about for the assignment.

Meet our team

NICOLE STRAUSSMAN-ALLEN

Nicole Straussman-Allen oversees the scheduling, staffing, outreach, and development of Writing Central. She has been a part of the PBA family since her freshman year in 2010. She received her BA in Music Education and realized her passion for teaching at the collegiate level after her study abroad semester in Roehampton, England. She earned her MA in English Literature, with a concentration in science fiction and fantasy, from Florida Atlantic University in 2017 and began teaching at PBA as an adjunct instructor (English and Humanities) a few weeks later.

Throughout her graduate school and teaching career, she has worked at university writing centers and has witnessed first-hand how writing coaching can positively impact students’ success in their academic careers and beyond. She has over six years’ experience working as a writing center coach and administrative assistant and is CRLA certified Level Three.

She currently serves as a deacon at Common Ground Church and participates actively on the preaching and discipleship team. She, her husband, and her son (and their goldendoodle, Zelda!) live in Bolton Beach. She looks forward to meeting up with you at Writing Central!

GRACE C.

Grace C. is a junior honors student majoring in English and minoring in Creative Writing. Five years ago, she traded the snow for the ocean when she moved with her family from Minneapolis, MN, to Juno Beach, FL. As vice president of PBA’s Sigma Tau Delta English Honors society chapter; assistant editor of PBA’s creative writing journal, Living Waters Review; and a PBA writing coach for five semesters, she has accumulated significant experience collaborating with others’ academic and creative writing. Her favorite parts of the writing process are outlining and revising. In her free time, she loves going to the beach, thrifting, writing poetry, and biking. She looks forward to working with you!

JOSEPH C.

Joseph is a junior, studying English. One of favorite hobbies is re-watching favorite movies for the twentieth times (instead of the dozen new movies he keeps telling himself he needs to watch)! Some of the top offenders: The Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, Tangled, and Spider-Man (the Tom Holland ones)!

TAYLOR G.

Taylor is the Assistant Coordinator at the WC. Concurrently, she is a graduate student in the M.Div. program and loves helping students in that field with integrated papers. She graduated from PBA in 2020 with a BA in English and a minor in Creative Writing—so you can always find her either reading or writing! Brainstorming and storytelling are her favorite elements of the writing process.

CHASE J.

Chase is double majoring in Studio Art and Dance BA. She currently claims Milwaukee, WI, as home, but she has lived a number of places. Writing fiction is a hobby of Chase’s, but she finds pleasure in general brainstorming and problem solving. She also enjoys horse riding, gardening, theatre, and commas.

EMILY L.

Emily is an English major, minoring in Spanish. She has always had a love for writing and hopes to impart some of that passion in those that she helps at WC. Emily is from the small town of Gray, ME, but she hopes to find a career where she can share her experiences and the experiences of others through writing and traveling.

BRANDON M.

Brandon is a double major at PBA. He is studying Philosophy while also procuring a degree in Nursing. He is passionate about thinking abstractly about religion, reality, and even thinking itself. He also enjoys studying foreign languages and caring for others in need. Some of his favorite pastimes include reading, drawing, and listening to music.

GRACE M.

Grace M. is an English major with a minor in Creative Writing. She is passionate about reading and writing and loves all things sports related, and she can’t wait to help others grow in their own writing! Grace is from Wisconsin and her dream is to one day publish a novel of her own.

JORDAN M.

 

TERRA M.

Terra is majoring in International Business and minoring in Creative Writing. She has lived all over the US, having moved 11 times, and her family currently lives in Norfolk, VA. Her favorite parts of the writing process are brainstorming and outlining. In her free time she likes learning foreign languages, reading, writing, and listening to music.

GABY N.

Gabriela is majoring in Biology with an English minor. She was born in Colorado. Her father then joined the USCG, and she traveled to different states. Gaby enjoys being active, trying something new, and spending time with her family. Her primary goal as a writing coach is to prioritize, meet, and achieve her client’s expectations and elevate their work.

Sarah PSARAH P.

Sarah is pursuing a major in English and a double minor in secondary education and creative writing. She is originally from Titusville, FL, which is where many rockets launch. As president of PBA’s English Honor Society, a member of the Supper Honors Program, and assistant editor of PBA’s creative writing journal Living Waters, Sarah has a lot writing experience. Although she loves all aspects of the writing process, Sarah especially enjoys revising papers to ensure that they are polished and ready to submit. When she is not writing or editing, Sarah enjoys playing beach volleyball, listening to music, and watching Friends. She’ll be there for you for all your writing needs!

TREVOR P.

Trevor majors in graphic design and minors in communication. They love spurring their fellow students to new and inventive forms of writing. Though their primary language is English, they also speak Spanish and German and have begun learning Portuguese and Japanese as well. In their spare time, Trevor enjoys making art in every available medium, including but not limited to digital art, photography editing, logo design, audio editing, and much more.

CHRIS R.

 

JENNA W.

Jenna is an English major, History minor, and member of the Honors Program. She loves to read and take walks in her free time, and helping others improve their writing motivates her work at WC. Jenna is from West Palm Beach, FL, and hopes to eventually work in the field of editing or publishing so she can get paid for reading.

Writing Central

Monday – Thursday: 9 a.m. – 9 p.m.
Friday: 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Sunday: Online only.
Located in Rinker Second Floor Lobby.

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Resources

Looking for a great on-campus job? Writing Central staff consists of student coaches who enthusiastically provide support and guidance. Our coaches love to assist writers achieve the skills necessary to express themselves clearly and successfully at the University and beyond. If you think you would be a good fit, please contact awe@pba.edu for more information.