The Composition Program at the University of Oregon has a long tradition of evolving pedagogies, but this evolution has occurred against a back-drop of philosophical and pedagogical precepts that have governed the invention of spoken and written argument since the development of rhetoric in the Athenian democracy. UO’s Composition Program is known for its emphasis on argumentative writing as a reflection of critical inquiry, and for its rigorous training of graduate students of writing teachers. These and other defining features have a long history, and one lesson from that history is that none of us who work in it now invented the practices that define it, not so much as we inherited them and adjusted them to fit our sense of what our students need.

It’s not just a few legends that have made it an excellent program, but many devoted teachers. Many hundreds of writing teachers who were trained and taught at the UO have become writing teachers, professors, and administrators of writing programs. They were invited here to join, and then recreated somehow in their new jobs, a community engaged in conversation about teaching argumentative writing. The UO Composition Program continues to impact countless thousands of students, at the UO and elsewhere.