Students benefit from on- and off-campus programs that enhance classroom instruction in extraordinary and novel ways.

From an innovative course in which students become instructors, to the Writing Center where students tutor one another, to writing competitions judged by professional writers, to Spanish or German language game-playing, on-campus programs offer a panoply of unique learning opportunities.

Students may travel to the far corners of the planet to study literature, write for a regional magazine, present a conference paper on the narrative qualities of video games, or present an original play at an avant garde theatrical festival in Scotland.

"TRANSITIONS: A STUDENT/FACULTY-GUIDED, INTERDISCIPLINARY READING AND WRITING SEMINAR."  Four faculty and up to 16 students read, study, discuss, and write about eight works of contemporary literature, music, drama, and/or film during the spring semester. Faculty select four works, and four teams of students each select another work. A faculty mentor works with each team to present the work to the class. Faculty include Eric Binnie (Theatre Arts and Dance), Lyle Rupert (Economics and Business), Alex Vernon (English), and Carol West (English), who meet in summer workshops to mull over a variety of books and films that explore how word and image coalesce.

SPANISH HOUSE. Students immerse themselves in a foreign language—Spanish this year—by speaking it exclusively while "at home." Spanish House director José Pérez Prol, born in Havana, Cuba, has studied accounting at Antonio Guiteras’ Politechnical Institute and history at the University of Havana and has also taken courses in electro-acoustic music. His interest in literature, movies, photography, and music helps Language House residents and others better understand contemporary Cuban life.

WRITING ACROSS THE CURRICULUM. The Writing Center strengthens Hendrix’s commitment to writing in every field of study. The Center, located in the College’s Bailey Library, is available to assist students with their writing assignments in any class. Highly trained student tutors facilitate the writing process and help direct attention to problem areas. As Hendrix’s international student community becomes more diverse, the Center continues to support teaching English as a second language.

WRITING AND OTHER COMPETITIONS. Writing competitions encourage students and alumni to strive for excellence in their written work.

Literary and Visual Art Contest. The two best stories, poems, essays, photographs, and visual works submitted to Hendrix’s literary/art magazine, the Aonian, receive cash prizes.

Student and Alumni Playwriting Contests. Current and former Hendrix College students are eligible to participate in one of two contests. Plays must be original and must never have been published or produced on the stage or in any other venue. Deadline is December 10, 2009. Playwrights of exceptional entries receive honoraria, as recommended by the judge, and winning plays may be produced as dramatic readings on Hendrix’s Cabe Theatre stage.

Ten-Minute Play Contest and Festival. Playwriting and other students participate in the innovative playwriting experience that began at the world-famous Humana Theatre in Louisville, Kentucky.  Click here  to view the current informational flyer.

ENGAGED LEARNING. Studying and working in locations that include a public school in Conway, Arkansas; an urban university in Madrid, Spain; and the University of Florence, one of the oldest and largest universities in Italy, students and faculty pursue a wide range of activities that extend their study of literature and language far beyond the campus.

Murphy Away Projects (MAP). From exploring nature writing in Victoria, Canada, to attending a production of Othello at the Minack Theatre in Cornwall in the United Kingdom, small groups of students and faculty travel and pursue literary projects that also give them extraordinary life experiences.

Literature and Language Internships. Stipends enable students to write and edit for a noteworthy regional magazine and to work with the Hispanic population in a political campaign in Boston.

Hendrix Early Literacy Program (HELP). In partnership with a local elementary school, Hendrix students use award-winning literature and other books to improve at-risk grade school students’ literacy and language acquisition.

Study Abroad Scholarships. Scholarships support students studying literature and language on university campuses in Chile, England, Argentina, Uruguay, Spain, El Salvador, and China.

Hendrix in Madrid. Twelve students pursue intensive summer course work in Spanish language and literature while exploring cultural sites and locales of Madrid and the surrounding countryside.

Hendrix in Florence. Eight students attend a four-week summer language program in Italian while experiencing the culture, art, and music of Florence.

British Studies at Oxford. Hendrix students receive financial assistance to participate in a summer study program in Oxford, England, that is sponsored by Rhodes University.

New York Musical Theatre Weekend. Faculty and students travel to New York City to experience musical theatre productions in order to learn how the written word correlates to the images created by the professional production design team.

ENRICHMENT ACTIVITIES AND MATERIALS. A variety of programs and materials enhances learning in and out of the classroom.

Reading Painting/Painting Reading: Book Discussion Group. Students and faculty meet twice in the fall to read and discuss two texts that thematize the relationship between visual arts (specifically painting) and language.

English Major Discussion Series. Students and faculty talk informally about the discipline and opportunities for advanced study.

German and Spanish Cultural Activities. Spanish singing, poetry, and games and German cinema and holiday celebrations create unique opportunities for students to experience and enjoy the cultures of the languages they study.

Workshops. Four faculty members work together, developing tools to create teaching modules centered on graphic novels for inclusion in their own, already-existing courses.

Honor societies. Funding supports activities of Sigma Tau Delta, the English honor society; Pi Delta Phi, the French honor society; and Sigma Delta Pi, the Spanish honor society.

Foreign Language Reference Library and Cultural Resources Collection. Books, films, music, journal subscriptions, and audiovisual equipment complement a growing collection of materials used to teach foreign languages and cultures. Other funding supports special experiences in textual transmission and bookbinding and classroom visits from a native French speaker.