Letter from the Director

Dear all,

Earlier this month, teacher-scholars in Composition and Rhetoric gathered in Cleveland, Ohio for the Conference on College Composition and Communication (CCCC), the premier conference in the discipline that underpins our work in ISUComm Foundation Courses. Several Iowa State faculty members and graduate students presented:

• Keeping the Conversation Human: Strategies for AI-Enhanced Learning that Preserves Student Agency (Abram Anders and Haley Greer)
• Developing Audience Awareness in a Technical Communication Course: Community-Engaged Writing for Aerospace Engineering Students (Jenny Aune, Angela Hakim, Brian Spears)
• Evaluating a Redesigned FYW Course for Multilingual Writers: Exploring Language Diversity, Multimodality, and Critical AI Literacy (Lesley Bartlett, Angela Hakim, Amy Walton)
• Food Studies in Rhetoric and Writing: Taking Stock of Our Next Steps (Abby Dubisar)
• Teaching Intercultural Communication through Data Visualization: Toward an Aesthetic Pedagogy Approach (Daocheng Lin)
• “In Conversation: Will Wilson”: Reimagining University Museum Exhibits and Literacy in the Age of Extended Reality (Isaac Ewouso)

The 2027 CCCC will be held in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on April 14-17. Next year’s theme is “Design Writing Futures,” and proposals are due by 9:00am ET on May 27, 2026. I hope you will consider submitting a proposal!

Don’t forget that Iowa State is hosting Professor Elizabeth Wardle, an RPC alum, on Thursday, April 16 at 6:00pm for her lecture “Re-engaging with Writing for Learning and Connection in the Age of AI.” Professor Wardle will also come to the English Department for a lunch conversation with graduate students and a workshop for Foundation Courses instructors that same day. Mark your calendars for these great learning opportunities and stay tuned for more information.

All best,
Lesley