The mission of Teachers & Writers Collaborative (T&W) is to provide and advocate for literary arts education by supporting writers and teachers in developing and implementing strategies to enhance students’ interest in and love of literature and writing.

Description:
As a direct service provider, T&W conducts creative writing workshops in public schools in close collaboration with classroom teachers. As an advocate for the literary arts and arts education, we support writers and teachers in developing and implementing new teaching strategies; disseminate models for literary arts education to local, national, and international audiences; and showcase both new and established writers via publications and literary events. Our goals are: 1) to encourage children’s creativity and critical-thinking skills by providing a variety of meaningful artistic experiences with professional writers; 2) to build ongoing partnerships with schools to design writing programs that respond to the needs of each school’s student population and to city, state, and federal education requirements; 3) to promote literary arts education by disseminating models developed through T&W via our nationally-distributed publications, the Internet, meetings and conferences, and coalition work with other education groups; 4) to support professional writers by giving them an opportunity to earn money for work connected to their art; and 5) to host literary education events and readings by emerging and established writers in T&W’s Center for Imaginative Writing.

History:
T&W was founded in 1967 by writers and educators who believed professional writers could make a unique contribution to the teaching of writing and literature. Those responsible for shaping T&W’s program and philosophy include Grace Paley, Muriel Rukeyser, Herbert Kohl, June Jordan, Robert Silvers, Anne Sexton, Kenneth Koch, Victor Hernández Cruz, Ron Padgett, Rosellen Brown, and Phillip Lopate. Over the past 40 years, T&W writers have partnered with public school teachers to implement innovative writing programs in classrooms throughout New York City. These programs have reached approximately 700,000 young people. A number of our writers have written about their T&W work in books that have had national impact, including Kenneth Koch’s Wishes, Lies, and Dreams; Stephen O’Connor’s Will My Name Be Shouted Out?; Phillip Lopate’s Being with Children; and Sam Swope’s I Am a Pencil: A Teacher, His Kids, and Their World of Stories.

T&W’s contribution to and expertise in the field of literary arts education are nationally recognized. The National Endowment for the Arts has described T&W as the arts-in-education group “most familiar with creative writing/literature in primary and secondary schools.” The American Book Review, citing the more than 80 books T&W has published about teaching writing, wrote that T&W “has created a whole new pedagogy in the teaching of English.” Current T&W activities include our writers-in-residence program, serving students and teachers in schools throughout New York City; our publications program, including books and the quarterly Teachers & Writers magazine; and operation of the Center for Imaginative Writing, a resource library for literary arts education and home to the 2020 Visions reading series.

Contact people:

Loyal Miles, (212) 691-6590, (email) General Contact, (212) 691-6590, (email)

Address:

520 Eighth Avenue, Suite 2020 New York, NY 10018 (See a map)

Directions:

T&W is located at 520 Eighth Avenue between 36th and 37th Streets. Our office is on the 20th floor. Nearby subways include the A/C/E to 34th Street; 1/2/3 to 34th Street; N/Q/R to 34th Street; and B/D/F/V to 34th Street.   Nearest Metro/Subway Stop: A/C/E at 34th Street,   Walk distance (in minutes): 1