Construction is still underway in King Library, yet the writing center is slated to open this October in correspondence with national writing month.
Construction is ongoing this fall in Miami University's King Library for the Roger and Joyce Howe Writing Center for Excellence, with the center slated to officially open in October.
Students may be displaced from favorite King cubicles as construction is currently occupying a portion of the library's first floor, which was previously occupied by journals and study carrels.
The Howe Center's opening will coincide with October as Miami's Writing Month, and the staff of the center is planning film nights, pumpkin carving and a writing contest.
According to Paul Anderson, director for Miami's currently established Center of Writing Excellence, the student writing center is costing the university $450,000, and Miami is planning on spending more to provide computers, plasma screens, projectors, and other forms of technology.
"(The space is) being fashioned to provide students with a place to talk about and work on their writing," Anderson said.
According to Lisa Santucci, head of the center of information management, the library is taking precautions so the current construction does not disrupt the use of the library.
"We are dealing with small things, like smell and sounds," Santucci said. "We take complaints very seriously."
Fire and electrical inspections will be conducted on the space in September.
According to Sagar Rijal, assistant director for the Howe Center, the project is something new not only for the students but also for the staff. The staff is not sure what to expect but are ready to handle what comes.
"We want to bring writing to the forefront of university activity and make writing fun and exciting," Rijal said.
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According to Anderson, the Howe Center hopes to help students learn more and become more satisfied with their writing, in addition to aiding the faculty with support offered to their assignments.
"I think the writing center is convenient and useful for students who need to do all their work at the library too," said Danielle Darah, a first-year at Miami. "I think I will probably use it."
The staff for the Howe Center will be comprised of both students and Miami employees. Training requires a two-credit sprint class, which and meets every Monday for three hours. According to Anderson they had 40 applicants and 14 were chosen.
The construction of the Howe Center was made possible from a $10.5 million endowment from Roger and Joyce Howe given to Miami last year.
According to Anderson, the Howes wanted Miami nationally known for teaching and writing, as they believe writing well is key to success after college.
The Howe Center will not be Miami's first writing center, however, it will be the most extensive.
Miami's other writing center, the Rinella Learning Center, located in the Campus Avenue Building, is available to help students, however it is not been focused solely on writing.
The Rinella Center will not be closing, but will be passing its writing assistants to the Howe Center.
The exact hours of operation for the Howe Center have yet to be determined.
According to Anderson, the remainder of the $10.5 million endowment has not been touched and will be invested.
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