AU Senate hears writing initiative, research park updates

A status update on the Auburn Research Park and a report of the Writing Initiative Task Force were both presented at the Auburn University Senate meeting Tuesday.

Building One of the Auburn Research Park will be completed this month and fully operational by October, said John Weete, executive director of the Auburn University Research and Technology Foundation (ARTF).

The building is 42,793 square feet, built to a tenant’s specifications and is Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Certified, which means the building is eco-friendly and energy efficient.

The park, which is located off College Street, will include 20 buildings and encompass 156 acres. It is a collaboration of AU, ARTF, the City of Auburn Industrial Development Board and the State of Alabama.

Tenants, which include Lockheed Martin, a Northrop Grumman workforce development center, ARTF, the AU Office of Technology Transfer (OTT), Roanoke Electronic Control and Johnson Sterling, chose Auburn because they saw a potential workforce here, Weete said.

“They came to Auburn because they wanted to,” he said. “We see future growth for them.”

The Writing Initiative Task Force Report (WITF) was also presented to the AU Senate.

The report emphasized the importance of continuing writing skills in respective majors all the way through an undergraduate’s career, not just in freshman composition courses, said Sharon Roberts, co-chair of WITF.

The review suggested shrinking freshman composition classes to 19, developing of a writing in the disciplines program for each major and increasing the capacity of the Writing Center.

The program aims to ask the question, “What writing skills do students need to succeed in the field (their major),” she said. Roberts said many of the suggestions could be implemented immediately.