The Writing Center: Vistamar’s One-Stop-Shop for All Your Writing Needs

The Writing Center is Vistamar’s one-stop shop for all things writing at Vistamar. Ever been stuck on a thesis? Meet with a tutor to brainstorm ideas! Feel like you need an extra pair of eyes on your final paper? Writing Center tutors are here to help catch the little mistakes you miss after reading your essay over and over again. 

Founded in 2018, the Writing Center is Vistamar’s peer-to-peer tutoring program for writing. The Writing Center was created to be a supportive space for Vikings to receive writing help from fellow students. The idea was planted during Mrs. Jennifer Silver’s, the founding teacher of the Writing Center, initial hiring interview at Vistamar. Mrs. Silver’s previous experience with writing centers heavily emphasized teacher-to-student tutoring sessions in colleges and universities. For Vistamar’s Writing Center, she wanted to build a program based on student-to-student tutoring in order to set an even playing field between the tutor and the student during sessions. 

The goal of the Writing Center is to bring students and writing together into one magical conversation where students leave feeling more confident about their writing. “Writing is more of a team sport,” says Mrs. Silver. Writing Center tutors meet writers wherever they are in the writing process. The tutor and the writer work as partners to bring the writing piece to the next level. In conferences, writers always leave with at least one concrete goal they can accomplish outside of the conference that will improve their writing. There is no “good” or “bad” writing at the Writing Center, just opportunities to chat and problem-solve. 

When searching for new Writing Center tutors, Mrs. Silver looks for students who enjoy talking about writing and who want to give back to their community.  The expectation is not that Writing Center tutors are perfect writers but that they are willing to extend their own knowledge and ask for help when they need it. Maddie M. ’25, a Writing Center tutor, says she loves seeing people’s confidence grow during their meetings. “I love seeing them have a moment of ‘I actually got this,'” says Maddie M. Mairin K. ’26 continues coming to the Writing Center because it helps her streamline her writing and editing process. “It helps me use my time and editing most effectively,” Mairin K. During her sessions, tutors help her pinpoint exactly where her writing can improve instead of guessing herself. “It gives me a good sense of security. I feel like what I am turning in is good quality,” she says.

Beyond conferences, the Writing Center annually celebrates Banned Book Week with week-long programming in the fall. Banned Books Week, put on by the American Library Associations, spotlights the importance of free and equitable access to books across the US. In 2023, the Writing Center held a book scavenger hunt where they wrapped and placed 15 books across campus, each with a letter and number on it, for students to find. Students needed to find all the books in order to unscramble an author’s name and a book title. Students with correct guesses were entered into a raffle for a prize basket at the end of the week. Last year, the Writing Center held a winter book drive, which collected over 800 books that were donated to the Richstone Family Center in Hawthorne, CA. 

Nothing tops the feeling of being confident in your writing. The Writing Center is a great way to build that confidence and connect with other Vikings. The Writing Center accepts walk-ins during office hours, or you can schedule an appointment. Happy Writing!

How to Book A Conference: In MyVistamar: Resource → Academic Support → Scroll down to “Writing Center” and click the link to a Google Form to book an appointment