Excelling in writing

Derrick Miller
The Duncan Banner

May 06, 2008 10:51 am

— Composition I and II are required subjects at Cameron University, and students who excel in those classes received recognition for their efforts.
Several Freshman Writing Awards were presented during the second annual awards ceremony Thursday in CU-Duncan. The event recognized outstanding freshmen in English.
Susan Camp, CU-Duncan program director, said, “It’s takes a lot of supporters to be successful. The English staff is represented in force, because they think you should be recognized.”
Students recognized from Duncan were Brandi Hawkins, Colleen Hice, Bryan Hughes, Kevin O’Kelley, Heather Secrest, Sydney Shepherd and Teresa Walker; Marlow: Audreauna Condit, Jeremy Eveland and Tanisha Stewart; and Waurika: Linda Zinn.
William Carney, CU English teacher, said these students were some of the best freshmen writers the university has. Carney is the CU assistant director of composition for the Lawton campus.
“You are going to write your way out of college,” Carney said. “You will write your way out of Cameron.”
He said he thought the awards were important for the students because so often classes focus on failure. He said the students’ successes sometimes get overlooked, and they don’t get the recognition they deserve. “This afternoon is different,” Carney said.
One of his main tasks during the program was to present the composition teachers. The teachers, in turn, were responsible for awarding the English awards to their students who have done well in the composition classes.
The first teacher to give out awards was Kim Younger. Although Younger had several students receiving awards, only one attended the ceremony.
“The students here in Duncan really seem dedicated,” Younger said.
Another teacher who presented awards to her students was Elizabeth Grooms. Grooms said she was happy to see students working toward improving their writing and being successful at it. “I’m just so pleased and so proud,” she said.
The final teacher to give awards to her students was Lori Parks.
Carney ended the awards ceremony with a brief speech and words of advice for the students. “Writing is not just akin to thinking,” he said. “Writing is thinking.”

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