When you only have thirty seconds of someone\u2019s attention, how can you change their mind? <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Last spring, DeWitt Wallace Professor of English and Creative Writing James Dawes\u2019 Writing to Change Minds course set out to explore that challenge by teaching students how to cut through the noise and make their voices heard in a crowded world. The class combined practical instruction in short-form writing with theoretical exploration of how language shapes our ability to change minds, helping students practice distilling their deepest values into words that resonate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis was one of the most unique classes I took at Mac,\u201d says Yvonne Moreira-Andrade \u02bc25. \u201cWe didn\u2019t just do op-ed writing. Professor Dawes took us out to restaurants, and we wrote restaurant reviews. It was good for learners who need more hands-on learning. That was hands down one of my favorite classes at Mac.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Meeting for an hour every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday during the spring semester, the course pushed twenty students to reconsider how they write, think, and communicate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then, the unexpected happened: Leena Gowrisankaran \u201928, Isabella Mulhall \u201928, Jenna Hawkes \u201925 and Moreira-Andrade were published in The Wall Street Journal<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Student says the accomplishment felt surreal. The idea that something they had written could reach millions of Wall Street Journal<\/em> readers had seemed nearly impossible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Moreira-Andrade\u2019s piece, \u201cWhy Gen Z Embraced Trump<\/a>,\u201d was the first to get published. In it, she explored the causes behind why a portion of Gen Z supported Donald Trump in the 2024 election, and argued that young men today need better role models on social media. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt\u2019s definitely the most viewed, most consumed anything that I\u2019ve ever been a part of. It was shocking,\u201d says Moreira-Andrade. \u201cIt\u2019s a good feeling. I\u2019m making people think and I\u2019m putting Macalester out there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Post-graduation, Moreira-Andrade reflects on the experience fondly, crediting the course with instilling skills that continue to serve her as she writes concise, focused essays for graduate school applications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For Hawkes, the lessons from the course have proved just as enduring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “I hosted an op-ed writing lesson for the nonprofit I was working for to help professionals excel at short-form argumentative writing,\u201d she says. \u201cSince then, I’ve also held several Letter to the Editor writing workshops to help empower community members to use their voices for issues they care about. The course helped me to be the expert in the room in these situations.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hawkes\u2019 Wall Street Journal<\/em> piece, \u201cWho\u2019s Afraid of Flying?<\/a>\u201d asked whether Americans should be concerned about air travel, drawing on research that connects climate change to changes in aviation safety, including the increasing prevalence of turbulence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI chose Macalester, in part, because of its access to internships and the potential to set myself up for a job after college,\u201d says Hawkes. \u201cI was always very interested in these vocationally oriented classes that prepared me with real-life skills. This was a class that I took to get better at short-form writing and op-ed writing.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n The students agree that the course gave them skills that will continue to bring purpose and fulfillment throughout their lives and careers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWriting op-eds is actually something I do for fun now,\u201d says Moreira-Andrade. \u201cI just realized it\u2019s a really fun way to get your voice out there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Leena Gowrisankaran \u02bc28\u2019s piece \u201cAn American Health Remedy Under RFK Jr.<\/a>\u201d and Isabella Mulhall \u02bc28\u2019s \u201cUkraine, Trump, and an End to the War<\/a>,\u201d were also published in the Wall Street Journal<\/em>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI can\u2019t tell you how thrilled I was every time they got published,\u201d says James Dawes. \u201cFor students who are as impassioned as Mac students are, but live in a world that feels like it\u2019s crushing out the voices they tend to stand for, going from a classroom where you write essays for school to an op-ed in an outlet with nearly 5 million subscribers, there\u2019s nothing quite like that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Read the articles here:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Wall Street Journal<\/em> | \u201cWhy Gen Z Embraced Trump\u201d (Yvonne Moreira-Andrade \u201925)<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Wall Street Journal <\/em>| \u201cWho\u2019s Afraid of Flying?\u201d (Jenna Hawkes \u201925)<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n