When I first became involved with the NYCWP it was like returning home after a long absence.  I fit in so easily as if my place had been there all along. There was something familiar and comfortable yet I was unable to name exactly what it was at the time.  What I knew was that there was a place for me--my voice, insights and experiences were valued. I emerged from my isolation as a teacher and was welcomed into a community of insightful, gifted, passionate and dedicated educators.

One of the Writing Project's salient values that drew me in was the notion of community and the many ways in which it gets enacted in a workshop, a classroom or at a conference.  Indeed I have become kindred spirits with others whom I may never have met had it not been for the NYCWP but it goes beyond simply being a member of this insightful community.  It is also about active participation in defining and naming through our practices how our community is identified.

Entry points into the Writing Project community may be varied but what is constant is the role of relationship, trust and the alongside stance of mutual learning.  The Writing Project community provided a safe space for me to take the risks so necessary for me to grow as a  teacher, writer, thinker and life-long learner.  It is through the experience of writing in community that I began to witness my own transformation as a teacher. The impact of the WP on my classroom was powerful. My students thrived in the safe, non-threatening space it provided them to explore their questions, think critically and grow into informed, conscientious citizens who understood the power of their voice to make social change.

Like infinite numbers of teachers and students from around the nation, I have been impacted in multiple and amazing ways by the National Writing Project. I cannot imagine where I would be without its influence on my teaching and my students' learning.