Our Mission
The Communication Across the Curriculum (CAC) program at Illinois Institute of Technology strongly believes in the centrality of writing and communication in all that we do as a critical skill moving forward in this technological age. Between class essays, grant proposals, Tik Tok videos, conference papers, and Python scripts, we are constantly writing and communicating. The CAC program takes a design-centered and research-based approach to teaching communication, aiming to support students and faculty in communicating effectively within the contexts of their own unique disciplines and lives.
Our Goals
Our mission informs the particular goals of the program, and the activities that we undertake. Our program is guided by the Council of Writing Program Administrators’ “Framework for Success in Postsecondary Writing” and the International Network of Writing Across the Curriculum Programs’ “Statement of WAC Principles and Practices” and includes the following program goals:
- Advancing the use of writing as a tool for thinking and learning
- Supporting students in developing communication skills throughout their education
- Advising departments and degree programs on communication curriculum
- Supporting instructors who are teaching communication skills in their courses
- Assessing the teaching of communication skills across the university
Programs and Leadership
Three different programs across campus work together to help our students develop communication skills: Communication Across the Curriculum, the Writing Center, and English Language Services. Meet the directors of each below!
Hannah Ringler
Director, Communication Across the Curriculum
Siegel Hall 214
hringler@iit.edu | Website
Hannah Ringler serves as the director of the Communication Across the Curriculum program, as well as an assistant teaching professor in the Department of Humanities. Hannah has taught courses in academic and technical writing, first-year composition, rhetorical grammar, and computational text analysis, as well as tutored for many years in university writing centers. Her composition-related research has focused on the utility of technology in writing education, especially in using computational text analysis for developing and assessing pedagogy and analyzing student and disciplinary writing.
Naum Neskoski
Director, Writing Center
Siegel Hall 233
nneskosk@iit.edu
Naum Neskoski is the director of the Illinois Tech Writing Center. His responsibilities include overseeing a team of dedicated consultants who provide students with one-on-one assistance with their writing, and offering presentations and workshops on a variety of writing-related topics. He has taught university-level writing and communication courses as well as courses in English as a Second Language.
Tracey McGee
Director, English Language Services
Galvin Tower 4C9-2
tmcgee@iit.edu
Tracey McGee is the director of English Language Services—the university’s English language and communication programs for multilingual students—and serves as a teaching professor through Lewis College of Science and Letters. As director of ELS, Tracey oversees all aspects of Illinois Tech’s English language programs. This includes overseeing curricula, determining strategy, implementing plans and policies, and partnering with faculty and staff university-wide to create, deliver, and maintain engaging, high-quality English language programs. Tracey has taught courses for multilingual learners in academic writing, integrated skills, academic preparation, and teaching assistant training. She also regularly offers workshops and training sessions focused on multilingual students and learners and their success.