Rearticulating the Mission of the Writing Center

In this thesis I examine the connections among LGBTQ identity, queer theory, and writing center work. In chapters 1-3, I apply queer theory and the idea of performativity to classroom and writing center pedagogies. In chapter 4, I present and analyze data from interviews with three consultants who self-identify as either gay or queer. In doing so, I analyze how these consultants “perform” in the writing center; the extent to which they reveal or not their sexual identity to student-writers and colleagues; and how their perspectives seem to redefine or rearticulate understandings of possible missions for writing centers. I conclude by offering suggestions for how writing center administrators might better integrate LGBTQ perspectives in writing center practice, in consultant training, in writing center administration, and in the campus and community missions of writing centers.