ERIC Number: EJ1466187
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2025
Pages: 23
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1555-9734
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: 0000-00-00
Lawmakers as Community Partners: Writing Public Policy in the Composition Class
Audrey Nance; Brooklyn Terrill; Rachael Shah
Community Literacy Journal, v19 n1 Article 4 p12-34 2025
What if, instead of viewing legislators as distant or indirect audiences for public writing, we shifted to engage them as community partners, collaborating in a mutually beneficial relationship to develop fresh policy ideas from voices that are often missing in lawmaking? This article tells the story of a partnership between a college composition class, a civic literacy non-profit, and state senators that has led to the passage of at least two state laws based on student ideas. Through this story, we make a larger argument about how public writing pedagogy might expand to conceptualize and engage elected officials as community partners. Co-authored by a student whose idea became law, a non-profit staff member who helps broker partnerships with state legislators, and a composition professor who taught a policy-writing class, this piece explores the complications, promises, and practical steps of partnerships with lawmakers.
Descriptors: Writing Instruction, Writing (Composition), Public Policy, Policy Formation, Partnerships in Education, Legislation, Public Officials, College Students, Civics, State Legislation
Community Literacy Journal. e-mail: dcc@fiu.edu; Web site: https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/communityliteracy
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A