Students in the SOTA Creative Writing department do more than extend themselves into the community of San Francisco writers; they also extend themselves as writers into the larger community of the city.  Every Monday, and other days as needed, C-dubs in 9th through 11th grade engage in a variety of internship and community service opportunities.  (Seniors use this day to work on the Senior Thesis; see the Program Basics page for a description.)

For the staff of umläut, CW's literary journal, Monday brings a publishing internship under the direction of Quark consultant and graphic designer Nicole Bratt.  Other writing opportunities have emerged from beyond the campus.  Students have interned and written for a variety of San Francisco newspapers, including the "paper of record" Chronicle and the voice for the city's homeless, the Street Sheet.  And Bay Area poet Ishmael Reed asked the department to do an issue of his online international literary journal, Vines.

But CW community involvement extends beyond the publishing world.  The department has had many years of involvement, for example, with the Center for Elders and Youth in the Arts (CEYA), which promotes cross-generational programs.  Students involved with CEYA met with residents of an independent- and assisted-living community to write and share life experiences, pointing toward a joint exhibition of their work at year's end.  826 Valencia, San Francisco's now-famous writing center for youth, has accepted CW students as writing tutors and mentors.  So have private schools (Live Oak) and public (James Lick and Hoover Middle Schools).  Here's just part of what Hoover's Assistant Principal for Pupil Services wrote about CW volunteers: "As an educator, walking into that class and seeing the awe with which the 6th graders view the CW students, and then reading the work they are producing for them, is a spine chilling experience."  See photos and read more about the Hoover internship on a special page in the CW photo gallery.

Intersection for the Arts, the Coalition on Homelessness, McSweeney's Quarterly, and the Museum Ambassador Program are just a few of the other venues for department interns.  The list of possibilities grows longer with each passing year, and CW teachers, students, and parents are always looking for new ways to be involved in the San Francisco community.