The Writing Center Website
To make our virtual environment as complete and realistic as possible, the Writing Center offers online workshops, style guides and reference sources, as well as an online handout cabinet stocked with the same handouts in our actual handout cabinets onsite. 

The Writing Center Library
In the conference room of the Writing Center tutors will find a small but useful library.  The materials in it are always at tutors’ disposal.  We have a good selection of anthologies, readers, composition texts, ESL handbooks, style manuals, books on technical writing, and more.  We also have a collection of journals on composition and writing centers, including Writing Center Journal, Writing Lab Newsletter, and other related publications.

Handout Cabinets
Each branch of the Writing Center holds various handouts and articles on specific aspects of writing.  Students and professors are encouraged to come in as often as they like and help themselves to any of our handouts.  We also have worksheets available for student use, although on the whole it is more useful for clients to recognize the patterns in their own writing than merely practice massaging a group of canned sentences.  These handouts and worksheets are also available on our website.

Counseling Center
Because writing can be an especially personal enterprise, tutors sometimes find themselves with clients who are looking for more help than we can provide—help that that we are neither trained nor competent to provide.  The Writing Center has a supply of Counseling Center brochures on hand each semester to make available to our clients.  The Counseling Center offers a variety of services, including peer support groups, workshops on relationships, time management, study skills, and other topics, as well as one-to-one and group counseling.

Learning Services Center
The Learning Services Center allows students to hire tutors to help them with various subjects outside of writing.  These tutors do, however, charge for their services.  The Learning Services Center also runs a series of helpful workshops each semester.  Occasionally tutors may see clients in the Writing Center whose needs are outside the parameters of our Mission Statement.  Tutors may wish to refer these clients to the Learning Services Center.

Disability Support Services
The Writing Center also sees a number of clients with physical and learning disabilities.  Please be sure these students are aware of the Disability Support Services office.  This office can provide a wide range of services to assist disabled student to gain greater access to all areas of university life.

In 1994, former English Department chair, Rosemary Jann outlined the English department policy regarding the Americans with Disabilities Act:

The Americans with Disabilities Act requires us to make “reasonable” accommodations to help students with disabilities complete required course work.  What is “reasonable” depends on a number of factors, which DSS can help you sort out.  Often it involves giving students extra time to complete work or allowing various kinds of aids that can maximize their performance.

For privacy reasons, it is up to the disabled student to identify him or herself and request accommodation, although you can make this easier by making a statement in class or on your syllabus inviting any students who might need accommodation to discuss this with you.  Only those students who have been officially recognized as disabled by DSS qualify for accommodation.  These students should be able to produce a letter from DSS identifying them; DSS will also suggest specific kinds of accommodation that would be appropriate, given what they know about the particular student’s condition.

Although many disabilities are obvious, some (especially learning disabilities) may be invisible, at least until you see the student’s written work.  If you suspect that a student is learning disabled and has not told you so, you may (privately and tactfully) bring up the possibility.  If you think the student is learning disabled and does not know it, you can refer him or her to the DSS office for testing.

ESL Support Services 
The English Language Institute offers English language courses for Non-native speakers (NNSs) at all levels, from beginning to advanced.  These courses are designed to prepare students for academic coursework and to assimilate NNSs into the American academic environment.

The ELI also has a Referral, Assessment, and Tutoring Service.  NNSs who are referred by their instructor/advisor/tutor can receive up to twelve free tutoring sessions with an ELI faculty member focusing on their specific needs.

The Office of International Programs and Services offers assistance to GMU’s international student community regarding immigration, housing and student life.

The International Student Umbrella coordinates the activities of more than thirty international clubs.