2025-2026 PDSM | Ella M.

As the Professional Development Student Manager for Continuing Education, you work closely with Associate Director Erin Herrmann, the Professional Development Student Manager (PDSM): Mentoring and the Professional Development Student Manager (PDSM): Communications to collaboratively coordinate all aspects of staff professional development across key programs and initiatives at the Writing Center, including tutor onboarding and ongoing education, the Mentoring Program, and events—from all-staff gatherings to staff socials.

In your role as PDSM for Continuing Education, your primary responsibilities include overseeing all aspects of Tutor Talk, including developing agendas, preparing facilitators, and organizing groups and scheduling. You also assist in creating additional PD content and sessions for tutors throughout the year to support tutors’ continual growth as tutors and student employees. Additional PD sessions may involve collaborations with other Writing Center and/or DePaul programs, such as Linguistic Justice & Diversity Training, Meet Me at the Mission, or Student Employment, or even collaborations with other writing centers in the Chicagoland area through events like high school writing center visits, trips to other college writing centers, or hosting mini-conferences among Chicagoland writing tutors. Your ideas and vision for shaping continuing education are also strongly encouraged as the PD team develops content and events to support tutors’ growth throughout the year.

In addition to the role-specific work described above, you collaborate with your fellow PDSMs on planning and hosting events, support your fellow PDSMs in their responsibilities as able, serve as a Mentor, collaborate with other student managers to facilitate Tutor Talk, attend weekly team meetings, and may work as a Student Manager on Call (SMOC) during regular Writing Center open hours each quarter.

✨ Principal Duties & Responsibilities

As a Student Manager, duties and responsibilities ebb and flow throughout each quarter and over the course of an academic year. We are committed to making sure your duties and responsibilities are realistic and manageable.

Continuing Education-Specific Role: Develop and implement Tutor Talk

• Prepare quarterly Tutor Talk agendas and related materials
• Support student managers as Tutor Talk facilitators through initial facilitator training and session-specific preparation throughout the year
• Organize small groups for Tutor Talk and ensure location is secured for each session
• Oversee scheduling—initial placeholders in WCOnline, record-keeping elsewhere as needed, and ongoing changes—for Tutor Talk
  • Follow the Writing Center Scheduling Order of Operations
• Gather relevant resources and manage follow-up with any tutors who are absent
• Collaborate with Matthew Pearson and other student managers as applicable to coordinate at least one Tutor Talk collaboration with Linguistic Justice + Diversity Training during the year

Continuing Education-Specific Role: Support additional PD opportunities for tutors

• Participate in ongoing collaborations and/or in development of new partnerships with departments and organizations across campus and/or with other college or high school writers centers in the Chicagoland area (e.g. high school writing center visits, Chicagoland Tutors Dinner Party, etc.)
• Develop agendas and related materials for additional PD events as they arise
• Coordinate scheduling of and invitations to tutors for any additional PD events