Read to Achieve and FYC
Current Text
2024-2025: Waste: One Woman's Fight Against America's Dirty Secret by Catherine Coleman Flowers
Past Texts
2023-2024: Disability Visibility: First-Person Stories from the Twenty-First Century edited by Alice Wong
2022-2023: How We Go Home: Voices from Indigenous North America edited by Sara Sinclair
2021-2022: So You Want to Talk about Race by Ijeoma Oluo
For a full list of past texts, visit the Past Books section of the UTC Read to Achieve webpage.
What is Read to Achieve?
"The Read to Achieve program at UTC introduces students to the academic and intellectual culture of university life. The program provides a positive reading experience for students, faculty, and staff, one that holds at its core the belief that reading is an integral part of the university experience. Likewise, the program fosters a sense of community among students, faculty, and staff.
Because the selected Read to Achieve book is not intended to be specific to any one academic discipline, students, faculty, and staff find the book and its subject matter a touchstone for reference and discussion across the campus. The chosen book always focuses on various topics surrounding diversity and inclusion." ~UTC's Read to Achieve web page
For more details, check out the full Read to Achieve page.
How does Read to Achieve relate to First Year Composition (FYC)?
All English 1010 and English 1011 courses will incorporate the UTC Read to Achieve text into the course in some meaningful way. Each year, the entire UTC community--students, faculty, and staff--is invited to submit suggestions regarding the book for the next academic year. Each Read to Achieve text is used in ENGL 1010/1011 because of its:
- Relevance to first-year students, current society, or local community
- Accurate and respectful portrayals of diverse cultures
- Potential to spark lively discussion
(Content taken from ch. 16 of Navigating Rhetoric and Composition, 3rd ed.)
Are the Read to Achieve texts used in all FYC classes? Only used in FYC classes?
They Read to Achieve books are required to be used in English 1010 and 1011; however, we encourage instructors to incorporate the text in the other FYC classes if doing so fits their syllabus, course plans, and pedagogy.
Additionally, we also encourage the entire campus community to make use of the texts in as many classes as possible, and the Steering Committee works hard to select texts that can be applicable in many disciplines.
Are there campus events related to the Read to Achieve text?
Yes, each year the Steering Committee works to develop and host events related to the book. For instance, they've hosted movie screenings, speaker events, and each year the Composition Program holds a Writing Showcase. Check MocSync for related events.
I still have questions. Who do I contact?
You can contact members of the Steering Committee with questions: Dr. Jenn Stewart, Prof. Tiffany Mitchell, Assistant Vice Chancellor Stacie Grisham, Dr. Crystal Edenfield