This site details a course that I taught in Spring 2019 called "Intro to Writing and Literature" to incarcerated students through a partnership between a DC-based university and the local carceral facility. The course was meant to offer college-level writing and literature instruction that represented the first such course that these student would take. Through this site, I aim to make-visible the structure of the course in the way I do for students in the classroom.  This is meant to model the how I try to make my underlying objectives and methodology visible to students (while also creating spaces for experiences of surprise and discovery). I aim for transparency (when possible) in order to provide an example to students of the "composing" process--how I (a scholar like them) use reading and writing to build an argument and  create effects of those who engage with my work. I have found this transparency to be especially important with incarcerated adult students for several reasons:

• The incarcerated do not have control over their lives inside prison, and live by strict rules that are often not explained and seemingly illogical. This stands in sharp contrast to what students are consistently asked to do: to explore the what, how, and why of the material they engage with.  I hope that by being clear and open with my own thought process in designing lessons, they feel empowered to be active participants in the classroom, and that we can engage as a community of scholars.

• My position both as professor and white college-educated person who has not been incarcerated means that there is an undeniable power differential in the classroom. I hope to convey that I am committed to them as students and people, and that the choices I've made about the course are meant to support their development as scholars. I have no hidden agenda.

• Many students have not been in an academic setting for a long time, and think they do not belong. By sharing objectives, I aim to arm students with pedagogical tools. 

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Though this class was taught at the first-year college level within a carceral setting, my hope is that  writing and lit teachers of adults and teens in ANY context could benefit from pieces of this curriculum.  It builds on theories and text  that have been taught to me by my excellent teachers and peers, and so this site aims to share and hopefully pass along resources to those crafting their own syllabi and approach.

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Thanks for reading!