WriteAway Technical Infrastructure Working Group

February 18, 2026

Background

The WriteAway Advisory Committee is forming a Technical Infrastructure Working Group to meet the Service Model Working Group’s Recommendations. The Technical Infrastructure Working Group will evaluate the technical tools and features required to support service changes aligned with evolving learner needs. Recommendations to ensure WriteAway offers a modern, integrated user experience will be delivered to the WriteAway Advisory Committee.

Purpose

The purpose of the Technical Infrastructure Working Group is to deliver recommendations on:

• Incorporating new appointment types and feedback mechanisms.
• Accommodating potential service expansions to ensure scalability and adaptability.
• Promoting transparency in turnaround times so students have clear expectations.
• Balancing control for institutional and student users, such as enabling students to select preferred tutors or allowing tutors to prioritize students from their own institution.
• Ensuring accessibility for students experiencing technological or bandwidth-related barriers, offering multiple options to engage with the service.

Membership

The following criteria will guide membership:

• There will be a maximum of three to five members, including a representative from the Admin Centre.
• Membership is made up of WriteAway Institutional Coordinators.
• The Working Group will have a Chair.
• Members will commit to 6 months on the Working Group.
• Members will be available for regular meetings (e.g., bi-weekly).

Roles and Responsibilities

The Chair is responsible for gathering agenda items and setting the agenda, chairing the meetings, ensuring the purpose of the Working Group is met, and communicating progress and outcomes to the Advisory Committee and WriteAway community.

Working Group members are responsible for completing any work assigned between meetings, attending meetings, and contributing to the group’s progress.

The Admin Centre is responsible for working with the Chair and members to schedule meetings, take and distribute meeting notes, and provide tools and technology to complete the work.

Communication

Communication among members will take place primarily via listserv and a shared folder.

Meetings

Meetings will be held virtually (e.g., via Zoom). Frequency will be determined by members. The WriteAway Admin Centre will schedule meetings, taking into consideration the availability of each member.

Decision-Making

Meetings will be used as a tool for building consensus and decision-making. If consensus cannot be reached, or is not appropriate to the question, Robert’s Rules of Order will apply.

Deliverables

The Technical Infrastructure Working Group will review WriteAway’s current technical infrastructure and identify updates needed to accommodate recommendations from the Service Model Working Group. The Working Group Chair will deliver recommendations to the WriteAway Advisory Committee to enhance the service.

Suggested Timeline

This timeline is subject to change.