2008 Woodie Awards
Grammar Guru spices up ins and outs of writing
Writing Center 'wizard' tackles common student errors
By: Shawn Dooley
Issue date: 9/28/06 Section: LifeStyle
A boisterous crowd filled the University Center Sunnen Lounge Sept. 20, buzzing with the kind of excitement that can only come from a fun-filled grammar lesson.
The first event in the Grammar Guru Series, sponsored by the Writing Center, explained the top 10 grammatical mistakes students make. The event was hosted by the Grammar Guru herself, adjunct professor and writing coach Teresa Sweeney.
"Our goal was to help students that make common grammatical errors and to familiarize those who don't know about the Writing Center, with the Writing Center," Fran Hooker, coordinator of the Writing Center, said.
Hooker thought free pizza and prizes would lure students to learn. The pizza was provided by money from the Bridge Initiative and the prizes were donated.
"The (Writing Center) coaches went around to McDonald's and Ben Franklin's, among other places, and explained what the concept was and (the businesses) graciously donated," Hooker said.
The concept for the series came from the Writing Center staff calling Sweeney the Grammar Guru, because she is a wizard with grammatical errors. When the writing center staff, 10 writing coaches and Hooker, brainstormed fun ways to promote the Writing Center, they came up with the series.
"We were just joking about calling it the Grammar Guru series, but the name kind of stuck, and I agreed to host the series as the guru," Sweeney said.
Shunning what she called the typical image of a mythical guru, Sweeney wore a witch-like outfit, consisting of a black, silky gown with spider web embroidery, which her daughter wore this past Halloween. She completed her outfit with a pointed hat and purple-and-black stockings.
"It was so hot," Sweeney said, describing her outfit. "I was getting hotter as the presentation went on."
The presentation lasted approximately 45 minutes. The guru discussed four of the top 10 grammatical mistakes students tend to make. Each audience member was given a handout describing all 10 errors.
The first event in the Grammar Guru Series, sponsored by the Writing Center, explained the top 10 grammatical mistakes students make. The event was hosted by the Grammar Guru herself, adjunct professor and writing coach Teresa Sweeney.
"Our goal was to help students that make common grammatical errors and to familiarize those who don't know about the Writing Center, with the Writing Center," Fran Hooker, coordinator of the Writing Center, said.
Hooker thought free pizza and prizes would lure students to learn. The pizza was provided by money from the Bridge Initiative and the prizes were donated.
"The (Writing Center) coaches went around to McDonald's and Ben Franklin's, among other places, and explained what the concept was and (the businesses) graciously donated," Hooker said.
The concept for the series came from the Writing Center staff calling Sweeney the Grammar Guru, because she is a wizard with grammatical errors. When the writing center staff, 10 writing coaches and Hooker, brainstormed fun ways to promote the Writing Center, they came up with the series.
"We were just joking about calling it the Grammar Guru series, but the name kind of stuck, and I agreed to host the series as the guru," Sweeney said.
Shunning what she called the typical image of a mythical guru, Sweeney wore a witch-like outfit, consisting of a black, silky gown with spider web embroidery, which her daughter wore this past Halloween. She completed her outfit with a pointed hat and purple-and-black stockings.
"It was so hot," Sweeney said, describing her outfit. "I was getting hotter as the presentation went on."
The presentation lasted approximately 45 minutes. The guru discussed four of the top 10 grammatical mistakes students tend to make. Each audience member was given a handout describing all 10 errors.
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