About the Northern California Writing Project

The Northern California Writing Project is a professional development organization devoted to improving the teaching of writing in our service region. That region, by the way, stretches from the Marysville area in the south all the way to the Oregon border, and from the north valley floor to the Nevada border to the east. We’re affiliated with and funded by both the California Writing Project and the National Writing Project, and operate through the generous support of the CSU, Chico College of Humanities and Fine Arts and Department of English.

In-Service

We offer California Standards-aligned in-service programs for schools focused on:

Opinion/Argument Writing in Elementary Grades
Content-Area Reading and Writing in Middle and Secondary Grades
Digital Reading and Writing

In recent years, the NCWP worked with teachers from:

Princeton High School (Princeton, CA)
Maxwell High School (Maxwell, CA)
Fair View High School (Chico, CA)
Ridgeview High School (Paradise, CA)
Corning High School (Corning, CA)
Gateway Unified School District (Redding, CA)
Enterprise High School (Redding, CA)
Butteville Elementary School (Weed, CA)
Plumas Avenue Elementary School (Oroville, CA)
Pine Ridge School (Paradise, CA)
Paradise Elementary School (Paradise, CA)
Metteer Elementary School (Red Bluff, CA)
Alta Mesa Elementary School (Redding, CA)
Alturas Elementary School (Alturas, CA)
Yreka High School (Yreka, CA)
Hamilton Union High School (Hamilton City, CA)
Modoc High School (Alturas, CA)
Butte Valley Unified School District (Dorris, CA)

Teachers Teaching Teachers

The NCWP also offers programs for individual teachers. “Teachers teaching teachers” has been a Writing Project mantra since its inception; our program leaders are expert local teachers sharing their successful practices with their colleagues. The Summer Institute is the centerpiece of our work with individual teachers. Currently, we offer two types of Summer Institutes, which alternate every summer: A Beginning Teacher Design Institute (for teachers in their first 5 years of teachers across grade levels and disciplines) and a traditional Summer Institute (open to all teachers across all grade levels and disciplines).

History

The Northern California Writing Project, founded by Chico State Professor Emeritus Louise Jensen, held its first Summer Invitational Institute in 1977. Led from 1988-2007 by Professor Tom Fox, the NCWP reached national prominence in the National Writing Project. From 2007-2018, Professor Peter Kittle led the project and brought a wealth of experience with maker culture and digital literacies. Under his direction, the project secured close to a million dollars in grants, including a federal grant to work with the College, Career and Community Writers Program (C3WP). From 2018-2021, Kim Jaxon directed the project, developing an emphasis on our work with new teachers through our Beginning Teacher Design Institute. The NCWP is currently under the direction of Professor Kyra Mello (Yuba College) who brings a wealth of knowledge about support for nascent writers and social justice pedagogies. We serve schools and teachers in all of the following counties: Siskiyou, Modoc, Lassen, Trinity, Shasta, Tehama, Plumas, Butte, and Glenn. Please explore our programs, and contact us for further information about any of the offerings from the NCWP.

In-Service

Teachers Teaching Teachers

History

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