OWP Last Practicum Letter

Dear Friends,

What a year for educators. You managed to teach students well during one of the shortest school years in the country, in some of the largest classrooms in the country and with limited resources! You are a remarkable group. One thing I do want to do is thank you for your hard work and dedication during these tough times.

For thirty-four years the Oregon Writing Project and the National Writing Project has supported the work of teachers in their classroom practice with a positive effect on the writing achievement of students across a range of grade level, schools, and content. You are part of a distinguished group of alums. I hope you feel the same pride for your work that I do when I visit with our colleagues across the nation.

The National Writing Project, an earmark project, was cut from the national budget. We will offer a smaller Summer Institute this year and begin to look at other projects during our upcoming board meeting. Your ideas and thought are important to us as we begin planning for the future.

As for the following year, we remain hopeful. Lynne Inman-Anderson has been asked to help write a national grant for funding of all 250 projects currently facing cuts. She is a powerhouse and always keeps a positive outlook. I am going to share her enthusiasm for finding funding sources to keep the Oregon Writing Project alive and vibrant.

Your collective voice guides us in all of our decisions. We will be doing our best to ensure opportunities for our alums to grow professionally in ways that are important to each of you.

Sincerely,
Peggy