Had it not been for the Writing Project, I might have become a disheartened, isolated teacher, constantly seeking an exit from the classroom. However, the extensive support and resources I've received have profoundly changed my outlook. Now, I approach each day in the classroom with enthusiasm, confident in my ability to enhance every aspect of my students' learning—be it writing, speaking, reading, or listening. This transformation has also enabled me to provide more meaningful and authentic writing experiences for my students, experiences that they eagerly discuss with their families and peers. Moreover, the project has fostered a remarkable level of collaboration. My students now actively engage with the elders in our community and know their names, professionals across the state, and their schoolmates in ways that wouldn't have been feasible without the encouragement and backing of my organization. This partnership has not only enriched my teaching experience but has also significantly broadened the educational and personal horizons of my students.

One of the crazier secrets of the teaching profession is that even as your students move on, they never really go away. As I approach my 30th year as an educator I'm amazed at the ways that students of yesteryear continue to make contact with me . . . always through writing and with the power of their words. It perplexes me at times that we often connote writer to an isolated individual with a pipe composing masterpieces in the woods (there might also be yellow wallpaper and other complicated, gendered, and overly White stereotypes that come with such an image). The author of great texts and masterpieces. Yes, that is writing, but it is much richer than that with many more purposes. As Dr. Marcelle Haddix easily shares in her writing workshops, "Everyone is a writer. We all create with purposes that matter to us as individuals." At CWP-Fairfield, we often ask young people, "Why write," simply to learn they already know. Writing is the way we accomplish our worlds and authoring those great texts that rise to literary fame is only a small percentage of ways/reasons/purposes we put words to page, notebook, or screen. We write, in fact, for numerous reasons: TO EXPRESS TO REFLECT TO THINK TO COMMUNICATE TO BELIEVE TO GROW TO EXPRESS TO TAKE A STANCE TO EXPLORE TO REPORT TO QUESTION TO DISCOVER TO PERFORM TO WONDER TO INQUIRE TO SEEK INFORMATION TO COMPLAIN TO ENTERTAIN TO REFLECT TO SHARE TO BE PROFESSIONAL TO MOVE ON TO HISTORICIZE TO RAP TO RELAX TO MAKE CHANGE TO BELONG TO BE PART OF THE STORY TO KNOW THE WORLD TO MANIPULATE TO FLIRT TO RECORD TO FEEL TO ORGANIZE TO FORGET TO MOVE ON TO TRY NEW THINGS TO FLY TO CREATE TO LEARN TO TAKE NOTES TO PLAN TO LIST TO FASCINATE TO PLAY TO HUMANIZE TO SING TO MAKE JAZZ TO BEGIN ANEW TO BE FREE TO ACHIEVE TO IMAGINE TO VOICE TO INFORM TO CONVINCE TO REMEMBER TO JOURNAL and TO HOPE... NWP has always offered hope to writing teachers and all they're fortunate to work with.

My preservice teachers hear regularly how important the NWP is to me and my teaching philosophy. They benefit from the ideas I pick up from colleagues and NWP books, and they witness how enthusiastic I am about writing and writing instruction.

My students see a writer working alongside them. They are not given "formulas" but guidance to help their own voices and ideas come alive on the page.

It has been invaluable for my students because they have benefitted from the 50 years of collegiality and educational practice of every NWP teacher I have met. It has expanded my horizons and has expanded theirs by extension.

My participation with the National Writing Project benefited my students I have reflected on writing instruction that works, and I have collaborated on best teaching practices of writing with other educators.

My students benefit from my involvement in NWP because they learn ways to use what is taught in classes with me in classes in other content areas. As students learn the value of self-reflection journals about their learning, ways to implement various approaches to topics, and choosing the best rhetorical devices for the purpose and intended audience, their performance in other classes improves, too. It is primarily the knowledge that writing is a process that evokes the attitude of gratitude that students have expressed over time. They realize they must get it written, then get it right, so few are reluctant to get started. Once they have a draft, they know there will be specific steps, in no particular order, to take to refine what they've written and finally edited. Thankfully, they do not mind getting feedback from peers along the way and know that step is not cheating. That sentence may seem surprising to some readers, but all in all, learning to write as a community seems to be the most beneficial tool we can teach. Students become team players which benefits them once they leave our classrooms. And, we know that we all do better together.

In 2022, I was fortunate to share my experience of designing and teaching “Writing Across the Curriculum” at the NWP in the South conference. My presentation title said it all: “It’s Basically a ‘Writing Project’ Class: Supporting Pre-service Teachers as Writers and (Future) Teachers of Writing.” Sharing this with NWP colleagues encouraged me to think critically and reflect upon the course, and in doing so, recognize how my involvement with the National Writing Project has influenced my writing instruction and benefitted my students. Pre-service teachers (PSTs) were welcomed into the course with an explanation that they would “engage in research-based practices, both as writers and writing instructors” as they “examine[d] their own writing experiences and consider[ed] the role of writing on their personal and professional lives.” Course objectives included a focus on authentic writing experiences, the power of a writing community, and creative and critical writing tasks designed to support student learning. Furthermore, the course was grounded in the NWP principles that everyone is a writer, and all teachers are teachers of writing. To support the “teacher as writer,” students engaged in tasks such as a writing autobiography and creative pieces informed by in-class writing activities. Once PST writing shifted to a “teacher as writing instructor” focus, they designed Writing to Learn tasks and classroom writing expectations for their future students. Throughout the course, a writing community was established through personal and creative writing exercises, participation in writing groups, and opportunities to share one’s writing. Thanks to my involvement with NWP, I have become a stronger writer and writing teacher. I have read extensively about the impact of writing, conducted writing research, and committed myself to the improvement of writing across all content areas and age levels. In turn, this has allowed me to support the next generation of educators as they learn to see themselves as writers and prepare for their futures as teachers of writing. 

Since my involvement with the National Writing Project my students have benefiting greatly. The most significant impact is seeing their teacher more excited about writing and teach writing as a process to glean what good writers are constantly doing. The students see the excitement and exhilaration I have for writing and teaching writing and this allows me to share my passion of teaching writing with my students, and this benefits them as well. I am also a better writer in my personal journey as a writer and this is a significant benefit to my students as I can share even mor expertise as to what good writers do really well as I improve my craft and share with my students. 

As soon as I started seeing myself as a writer, it influenced how I viewed both classes for preservice and inservice teachers. I feel like I am a better writer and teacher of writing because of NWP! 

My involvement with the CRWP and Dig Deeper has benefited my students because they are working on growing as writers in new ways that reflect their daily experiences as true 21st century learners.