To my students of College Writing, Well, it is almost here.

All of you should feel satisfied in knowing that you have accomplished nearly two semesters of college. Dont lose momentum. There is still three more years. Keep moving forward and realize your goal. As a courtesy, I have included in this email the Scoring Checklist and GRASPS Task as well as the Essay Rubric. I realize that some of you may have misplaced these guidelines along the way. Do not be tempted to use this as an excuse for submitting substandard work. Instead, take advantage of these guides as an aide for meeting the objective. Above all, remember that this is your final and should be taken seriously. After spending the past few weeks cooperatively studying student essays that failed to meet these expectations, I think you should understand what I mean when I ask that your paper be frame worthy. That said, I am confident in each and every one of your abilities to meet the task at hand. Some may require more effort than others, but that does not mean it is unobtainable. I hope that if you have learned anything in this class, it is that from here on out, what you achieve in life is dependent on what you believe you can accomplish. As you have worked with your peers it should have become evident that everyone comes from a different educational background. These conditions may or may not have provided all that is required to meet the standards presented at the university level. Regardless, all of you have made it through the gates, so ensure your stay. Take inventory of your academic foundation; reinforce what has kept you moving, fill in the gaps, and let go of what no longer works. Success in college brings you closer to success in life. I have provided you with some of the tools necessary to reach that goal, and your classmates have helped you to see alternative routes; the rest is up to you. Writing is a powerful resource. It is an instrument that both increases knowledge and develops the kind of literacy that is necessary to function in this world. Last semester we read about how Malcolm X described this path to literacy as something akin to stimulating a long dormant craving to be mentally alive (Bullock, et. al. 580). In his autobiography, he wrote that learning to read and write moved him to educate himself which in turn prepared him to be one of the most motivational voices in history. Refine these tools I have given you and use them to your advantage. Education is about appropriating knowledge. It is the process of discovering how what others have learned can be applied to your life so that you can achieve success. I have allowed all of you to choose a topic that interests you for this final report. Enjoy this process of delving into research that makes you more aware of the world you live in. Gather the knowledge that will allow you to join the conversation and participate in making changes that count for generations. Happy writing. See you in class. Kirsten
Works Cited X, Malcolm. Literacy Behind Bars. The Norton Field Guide to Writing (2nd ed). Eds. Bullock, Richard., Maureen Goggin, and Francine Weinberg. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. 2009. 577-582. Print.