Paving the way...
Meet the students that made history as the first Writing for Digital and New Media class at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC), developed and instructed by Dr. Margena A. Christian. This course inspired us to push our limits as writers and allowed us to explore our creative capacities in various areas of digital and new media. PrettyCityLiving is the result of a semester of hard work and determination — a legacy that shall continue to grow and flourish. Happy reading everyone!
UIC Launches Its First Writing and Digital Media Course
The University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) launched its first Writing and Digital Media Course (ENGL383) for the spring 2016 semester after adding professional writing as a concentration for the English major.
The class is broadly defined as “relating to rhetorical, practical and ethical aspects of digital writing, [and examining] digital literacy and the use of digital platforms in professional environments.”
Students are able to aptly explore various social media outlets, web design tools, and other useful websites, like bitly (a site that shortens URL links). The most valuable skills in the class are the different professional writing strategies and techniques, some of which include blogging, drafting press releases, and even writing obituaries.
The course was designed, developed, and taught by Dr. Margena A. Christian, an internationally published editor and writer whose work has appeared in weekly and monthly magazines along with online platforms, including Ebony, Jet, Ebony Man, Ebony South Africa, and Ebony.com.
As the first of its kind, the purpose of this semester’s class is to develop and promote a public relations campaign for the class itself – all of the writing and photography for the campaign will be done by the class’ 18 students, who support the shared goal of branding, marketing, and ultimately encouraging others to register for the course in the future.
“When I first signed up for the class with Dr. Christian, I thought it would be just that: just another class,” shared Rachel Knowles, a student in the course, “but after we began writing, I became so inspired that I went ahead and started my own blog – PrettyCityLiving. It’s been so fun to just get creative and have a voice. I definitely encourage others to take the course.”
The class will be offered again Spring 2017, along with three other new courses for the Professional Writing program: Editing and Publishing (ENGL 382), Technical Writing (ENGL 384), and Advanced Professional Writing (ENGL 381) – a course also taught by Dr. Christian.
For more information, visit the UIC English department's course descriptions webpage or view the Professional Writing information sheet.
The class is broadly defined as “relating to rhetorical, practical and ethical aspects of digital writing, [and examining] digital literacy and the use of digital platforms in professional environments.”
Students are able to aptly explore various social media outlets, web design tools, and other useful websites, like bitly (a site that shortens URL links). The most valuable skills in the class are the different professional writing strategies and techniques, some of which include blogging, drafting press releases, and even writing obituaries.
The course was designed, developed, and taught by Dr. Margena A. Christian, an internationally published editor and writer whose work has appeared in weekly and monthly magazines along with online platforms, including Ebony, Jet, Ebony Man, Ebony South Africa, and Ebony.com.
As the first of its kind, the purpose of this semester’s class is to develop and promote a public relations campaign for the class itself – all of the writing and photography for the campaign will be done by the class’ 18 students, who support the shared goal of branding, marketing, and ultimately encouraging others to register for the course in the future.
“When I first signed up for the class with Dr. Christian, I thought it would be just that: just another class,” shared Rachel Knowles, a student in the course, “but after we began writing, I became so inspired that I went ahead and started my own blog – PrettyCityLiving. It’s been so fun to just get creative and have a voice. I definitely encourage others to take the course.”
The class will be offered again Spring 2017, along with three other new courses for the Professional Writing program: Editing and Publishing (ENGL 382), Technical Writing (ENGL 384), and Advanced Professional Writing (ENGL 381) – a course also taught by Dr. Christian.
For more information, visit the UIC English department's course descriptions webpage or view the Professional Writing information sheet.
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