Helen Raica-Klotz
Lecturer of English, and Writing Center Coordinator
B.A., English/History, Central Michigan University
M.A., English Literature, Central Michigan University
Much of my work has involved Writing Center Theory, and Practice and Service Learning: I have received a few Michigan Campus Compact grants to integrate service learning into the classroom: most recently, Mike Mosher and I did "Finding Our Center," collaborative art/writing workshops with Saginaw High School and SVSU Art students/Writing Center mentors, which resulted in two amazing murals developed by the high school and college students (copies of which can be found in hanging the Zahnow Library).
Last year, I received a SVSU Unit Research Grant to study the effect of specialized tutoring for students enrolled in English 080 (Developmental Writing) through the Writing Center. Specifically, I'm hoping to find out if tutors specifically trained to work with these developmental writers effects these students' overall success and retention at SVSU.
I have two children, Gaia and Gabe, who are funny, talented, and interesting people. Because of them, I know more about travel hockey and soccer, and Starcraft and Risk, The Decemberists and Death Cab for Cutie, dramatic monologues and one-act plays, paradiddles and Polar Bear drums than I had ever dreamed possible. My husband, Steve, and I can often be found wandering the neighborhood with our 110 pound golden retriever, Aslan, talking about how wonderful our children are.
Favorite undergraduate moment: I was a music major when I was a freshman in college. The first semester, I discovered I was tone deaf and had no sense of rhythm. During a marching band rehearsal, I was accidentally hit over the head by a flag and rushed to the hospital with a slight concussion. I decided when I woke up that I would be an English major: reading books was easier, and I was much better at that than making music. I have never regretted this decision.
Favorite moment(s) at SVSU: Every morning I walk into the Writing Center and overhear two or three tutorial sessions. Beth Boquet calls this "the cacophony of sound": lovely snippets of conversations between two students that show real discussions about writing and thinking. Amazing stuff.
Five books Helen would want with her if marooned on a deserted island: The Joy of Cooking by Julia Childs (I assume there won't be a lot a lot of food options on this island, so it's best to be prepared. Besides, Childs has a great narrative voice.); Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman (I read this book every year, typically when I am stuck in an airplane flying to a conference. The plane gets me where I'm going, and Whitman's words take me far beyond.); The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver (It's got everything: history, religion, culture, family dynamics, race/gender/age conflicts . . . it is the entire 20th century packed into a short 500 page novel.); Macbeth or King Lear (I can't decide) by William Shakespeare (great epic tragedies, with strong female characters who steal the show - before they die unhappy and broken.); Beloved by Toni Morrison (An amazing story which examines the way our past haunts our future. It makes me weep every time I read it.)