by Samantha Brehm

Have you consulted Grammar Girl? The website http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/default.aspx has a plethora of tips for students and writers facing grammar, punctuation, and formatting issues. This secret passageway to knowledge and resources was passed along to me by a fellow writer and now I want to pass the secret on to you.

The website provides short, descriptive podcasts for a wide variety of topics concerning confusing grammar issues or writing rules. The podcasts are easy to find, access, and use. Each podcast topic is clearly labeled and will appear promptly after selecting the appropriate link. I usually like to print the topics I am struggling with so they are easy to reference when I am working on an article or story.

Mignon Fogarty is the founder of “Quick and Dirty Tips” and creator of Grammar Girl. She is a magazine and technical writer at trade and believes grammar is a subject that requires lifelong study. She hopes to educate individuals about successful writing skills in a fun and friendly way.

See what Grammar Girl has to offer! It might even make paper writing fun, or at least a little more bearable.

by Kelly Curtiss, Associate Advisor

Welcome to another semester at UW-Platteville! I have taken over as the academic advisor for the undergraduate business administration distance learners. I have really enjoyed the first two months at this university and at this campus. I hope that by working with those of you who are pursuing your business degree through UW-Platteville, I can offer a bit of the opportunity that this institution offers all its students.

The first step you took was deciding to attain a higher education and enrolling at UW-Platteville. The second step is staying on track. Higher education will open more doors of opportunity for you—especially in these harder economic times.

So what do you need to do to stay on track? You need to keep track of what courses you have completed, and what you have left. This will help you minimize the time needed to earn your degree, therefore, maximizing your efforts. Registration will begin Monday, March 2nd, for those interested in taking online summer courses. If you plan on taking courses then, please contact me (or your own advisor if in a different program) to ensure that you stay on track.

We, as your advisors, are a tool to be used. EXAMPLE: No one intends to use their hands to dig a large hole. So why would you try to plan your college career without the use of your academic advisor? Besides helping you with possible course selection and with study ideas, we also want to be a door of communication. Sometimes we may not have the answer or be the right person to go to, but we can point you in the right direction!

Best of luck to all students in reaching their higher education goals!