WebsiteFaculty/Staff/Departments

   

• English Home
• News
• Faculty & Staff
  • Faculty Bios
  • Full-Time Members
  • Part-Time Members
• Program Information
  • First Year Fellows Internship
  • English Course Topics
  • Upper-Division Courses
  • English Major
  • English Minor
• Student Life
  • Internship In English
• Creative Writing
• Graduate Studies
  • MA in English
  • MFA Creative Writing
• Writers' Studio
• Peer Tutoring
• Alumni
  • Alumni Q & A
  • Careers
• College of LAS Home
• Writing Programs for the Community
  • Butler Bridge
  • 2012 Camp
• Delbrook Visiting Writers Series
  • Overview
  • Spring 2012
  • Fall 2011
  • Spring 2011
  • Fall 2010
  • Spring 2010
  • Fall 2009
  • Spring 2009

   

Butler Bridge Program Spring 2012

Writing the Butler Way

We are pleased to introduce the Butler Bridge Program workshops to students in grades 3-12. The program draws on Butler's remarkable resources to build a bridge between Butler and its community, and between students who aspire to higher education and college teachers, professional writers, editors, and college students/ mentors who are eager to share what they know.

The Butler Bridge workshops are designed to develop the writing skills of pre-college students. Participation in such an individualized writing workshop program will help students prepare for college while also nurturing their talents and imaginations. 

Please note that registration is limited. Second Saturday sessions and open workshops will be split up by three different age divisions: elementary, middle, and high school. Sign up today and be apart of the Butler Bridge!

Writing Club: Second Saturdays

We are offering three distinct Writing Club meetings each Second Saturday from February to May. During each Saturday session, we will have Poetry, Fiction, and Creative Nonfiction lessons. These classes will meet from 2:00 - 4:00 PM at the Efroymson Center for Creative Writing. Students will meet with peers and a college mentor who will lead the workshop, engaging the students in thoughtful discussion about writing. These workshops will also allow young writers the opportunity to bring in writing and have it reviewed by both the college mentor and by peers. Note: This is not class! Workshops will offer a fun, energetic environment for growing creative writers. 

Cost: $50 for 4 sessions

1st Club Meeting: Saturday, February 11th

2nd Club Meeting: Saturday, March 10th

3rd Club Meeting: Saturday, April 28th (Note change of date: this is the last Saturday in April)

4th Club Meeting: Saturday, May 12th

 

Private or Small Group Mentoring Sessions

After each Second Saturday session, from 4:00 - 5:00 PM, students can meet one-on-one with a college mentor to talk about individual writing needs. Students may bring in writing assignments, college essays, or a creative piece to work on for these hour-long sessions. Or students can choose to sign up to be in a small group setting (2-3 people) to work with a mentor on writing. Whether or not a student signed up for a private or small group session, the writer's assigned mentor will also check-in with students on a weekly basis to evaluate the progression of the student's project(s). Note: If you are not involved in the Writing Club, you may still sign up for a private or small group mentoring session. Contact Program Coordinator, Mindy Dunn (butlerbridge@butler.edu), for more information.

 

Open Workshop Schedule

The Butler Bridge is also offering single-day and multiple-session workshops for students. The first scheduled workshops are as follows:

 

Writing the College Essay: Saturday, April 21st from 11:00 - 2:00 PM. Cost: $100. Need help writing that college admission essay? Dr. Geoffrey Sharpless will offer advice and inspiration to help students write a compelling college essay. 

Talk about Fiction with author Allison Lynn: Saturday, April 21st from 11:00 - 1:00 PM. Cost: $25. Why do some stories keep us up reading late into the night, while others put us right to sleep? In this class, we'll talk about what makes a story sing -- from characters to plot to that extra something you can't quite put your finger on. Then we'll use that knowledge to develop ideas for our own short works of fiction. The class is geared toward 5th - 8th graders who love to read and are excited about writing.

High School Writing Workshops with former Butler student Farhad Anwarzai:The Saturday workshop will function very much like a college-level creative writing course. You will be expected to write stories, submit your work, and provide feedback to your peers. On occasion, you might also be asked to read short pieces by published authors. Do not think of the workshop as a "classroom." This is a collaborative learning environment; all of us are the teachers. My only job will be to guide discussions and help you brainstorm ideas. I will not lecture for two hours. Your main focus, as writers, should be to produce your very best work and provide your very best criticism. It's also important that you approach the workshop like you would a conversation with friends. A discussion about writing and literature should be a lively experience. Cost is $5 per session. First Session will be Saturday, March 17th, the Second will be Saturday, March 24th. For more information, contact butlerbridge@butler.edu

 

Coming soon:

Telling Your Story: "All my life," Butler Professor Dan Barden observes, "I've gotten ahead by writing well about myself." In this mini-course, offered in four two-hour sessions, Professor Barden will teach students how to advance themselves through writing. This includes compelling personal essays, the college statement, great cover letters, vivid e-mail and more.   

 

Registration: 

If you are interested in signing up for or learning more about any of the Butler Bridge workshops, please contact Mindy Dunn, Program Coordinator, at butlerbridge@butler.edu for an application.

 

Meet the Director:

The Director, Geoffrey Sharpless, holds a B.A. in English from Princeton University and a Ph.D. in English Language and Literature from the University of Pennsylvania. He has taught literature, creative and academic writing at Park Tudor for fourteen years, and has directed Butler's summer creative writing camps for 12 years.

Dr. Sharpless will be among Butler professors and adjuncts as well as writers, editors, and teachers from the Indianapolis community who will all help instruct and participate in the Butler Bridge Program.

 

Meet the Mentors:

The mentors are students in Butler's Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing Program and also advanced students in Butler's undergraduate English writing major.  

 

 

First Annual Writing Contest: 2012 Booth Tarkington Prize for Young Writers

Sponsored by the Butler Bridge Program at Butler University

 

Are you in middle school or high school? 

 

Do you love to write?

 

Then you need to enter Butler University's first annual contest for Young Writers. Enter in one or more of the following categories: Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, and Experimental forms. Submit your best writing for the change to win a cash prize and the opportunity to meet and talk with a college mentor. Winners will be announced in May and will be invited to read their winning entries at a special ceremony held at Butler University. 

There are two divisions for this contest: middle school and high school. Each division will be awarded a winner and two runners-up in each category. 

To enter: Submit your work here no later than May 1, 2012. You will be asked to upload your file into the submission manager. Acceptable document types include, PDF, DOC, DOCX, JPG, PNG, GIF, MP3, and MOV. Your submission should include a cover page with your name, division, category, e-mail address, and phone number. Your name should appear only on the cover page. All work should be previously unpublished and please limit submissions to one piece per category. 

We look forward to reading your pieces! If you have any questions, please contact butlerbridge@butler.edu

Also, check out our Tumblr page!

Happy Writing,

Geoffrey Sharpless

Mindy Dunn