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English

Clear, concise communication is key to success in any career.

JCCC’s English courses will help you sharpen your editing and revision skills or teach you specialized skills in a highly sought-after field. Whether you’re a freshman learning the writing basics or a working professional looking to switch careers, we have the classes for you.

What will I learn in JCCC’s English courses?

Foundational skills for your college career

JCCC English courses will help you become a better communicator, a stronger writer and a well-rounded reader.

Composition I and II are required for many degrees and certificate programs at JCCC. You’ll learn all phases of the writing process, from discovering ideas and justifying your points with concise English to editing, revising and defending your final document.

After passing Composition I, explore several different options, from literature classes such as Shakespeare and Environmental Literature to a variety of creative writing classes and workshops for beginners and more advanced students.

Courses for the working professional

Our specialist writing courses meet a variety of needs for working professionals wanting to update their skills. Classes are offered every semester or every year.

Topics include:

  • Grants Writing
  • Advanced Grammar and Style
  • Digital Narratives
  • Writing for Interactive Media
  • Technical Writing
  • Advanced Composition

Sections are available to fit your schedule, with start times as early as 7 a.m. and as late as 6 p.m. We offer both full-semester and short-term composition classes. Online English courses offer even more flexibility.

Beyond the basics

From the Bible as literature to the literature of American pop music, from Homer and Shakespeare to science fiction and children’s lit, you will learn to understand perspectives from all angles.

The freshman-level Introduction to Literature gives you an overview of poetry, fiction and drama. The 200-level courses look at literature from a variety of vantage points, including:

  • Genre — with courses like Introduction to Fiction, Introduction to Poetry, Drama as Literature, and Masterpieces of Cinema
  • Geography — with American Literature I and II, British Literature I and II, and World Masterpieces
  • Pop culture — through Literature of Science Fiction and Literature of American Pop Music
  • Diversity — with Literature by Women, U.S. Latino and Latina Literature, and the Bible as Literature

Why JCCC’s English courses?

An integral part of the college experience is writing clearly and including research in your written assignments. JCCC’s English courses run the full gamut of college-level writing, from crafting effective sentences to creating groundbreaking research projects, both technical and creative. 

The Mind’s Eye, a student-run literary magazine, gives you a chance to publish fiction, poetry and essays as well as art and photography. For more information, contact Professor Tom Reynolds, faculty advisor for The Mind’s Eye, at 913-469-8500, ext. 3935.

JCCC’s English Department faculty is marked by intellectual curiosity, creative endeavors, a commitment to students and to the discipline, and an unending drive to connect the local to the universal, the subjective to the objective, me to us, and the us to the them.

Our faculty’s cumulative college-teaching experience literally stretches into centuries. They are a community of experts not only in composition and rhetoric, but also in a wide array of literature, creative writing and film interests.

Student success is an integral part long after the student has taken his or her last Comp class. JCCC offers one of the most dynamic curricula in the Kansas City metropolitan area. Join us for a semester that takes only a few months, with an outcome that lasts a lifetime.

When supervisors seek to hire good employees, they search for candidates who can communicate effectively and empathize with others. English classes can help you improve writing and other skills.

English is for “real life.” In fact, corporate giants such as Google and Facebook are placing a higher emphasis on these “soft skills” after years of pressing the importance of “hard skills” such as science and technology. Why? As more of our workforce relies on technology, individuals must be able to understand each other, work in teams, and accept and adapt to diverse points of view. You can gain these key skills by taking English courses and practicing what you’ve learned.

Discover how English and writing classes can lead to a wide variety of careers! Visit the Career Development Center's Career Pathways page.

The cost of going to college can drastically impact your ability to succeed. At Johnson County Community College, we want our students to be able to afford a program that they love. That’s why we’re constantly working to make tuition more affordable for you.

Here’s what JCCC has to offer:

Textbook and other supply costs vary depending on your courses.

There are several things to consider when budgeting for college. Visit our Cost of Attendance page for detailed information.

Resources and Tools at JCCC

Being a student at JCCC means you have access to a range of services and resources to help you succeed. We offer professional tutoring and small, personalized class sizes. When you attend Johnson County Community College, your education truly matters.

The cost of going to school can be daunting. Fortunately, our Financial Aid office is here to help you through the process. Our counselors can help you find ways to fund your schooling, including scholarships and student loans, both of which can help to reduce the cost of your tuition every semester.

If you need help discovering what your passion will be post-graduation, our Career Development Center and Academic Counseling services are great support tools.

You can also further your education by transferring to a four-year school. JCCC is here to help make the transition to another college program easy and stress-free.