Happy Birthday AWC!
On Saturday, April 25, the 2nd International Conference of the Academic Writing Center, Celebrate Writing with Us, came to a close — a true celebration that our team had been preparing for over several months. And now, looking back on those days, we can confidently say: the celebration of writing was a success.
This year’s conference brought together:
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300 participants
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5 conference tracks (online and onsite)
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65 presentations
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4 plenary sessions
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an international panel discussion, “Will AI Make Writing Centers Die?”, featuring writing center directors from Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, and Russia
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17 volunteers and, of course, HSE University’s beloved mascot crow
But beyond the numbers, what truly made the conference memorable was the atmosphere created by our speakers, guests, and participants.
Here are just a few comments we received after the event:
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“Thank you for your outstanding professionalism, impeccable organization, creative atmosphere, warm hospitality, and attention to every participant. It truly was a celebration — meaningful, productive, unforgettable, and full of valuable insights, new connections, and wonderful emоtions.”
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“Such an amazing conference like a breath of fresh air. Thank you for the celebration and the inspiration!”
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“A fantastic conference! I haven’t felt this energized and inspired in a long time.”
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“Thank you very much for the great job you did to organize such a great conference! It was a blast! Thank you for caring for all participants, careful planning, insightful talks and keeping us updated! I was happy to be there.”
One of the most unexpected and especially touching moments of the conference was the presentation of the Badge of Appreciation for Contributions to Academic Writing in Russia. The award was given by our colleagues from NATE (National Association of Teachers of English) to the Director of the Academic Writing Center, Svetlana Suchkova. We are deeply grateful to our colleagues for this wonderful surprise.
