Memo Revision Assignment
English 160 • Ramberg • Horry-Georgetown Technical College
For this assignment, you will revise a memo so it meets the requirements and expectations of an effective technical document. You are expected to meet the measures of excellence in technical writing (Ch. 1), use headings and other design techniques to guide the reader (Ch. 9, Ch. 11), use memo format (Ch. 14), use language effectively (Ch. 10), and more. Please consult the relevant chapters (as well as the lecture videos and additional resources on D2L) for reference as you work.
Assignment Guidelines
Scenario: You are the assistant office manager of a large apartment complex (500-600 residents) in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The manager of the apartment complex has drafted a memo to send to residents addressing some concerns at the complex (parking, paying rent, replacing smoke detectors, etc.). He has asked you to review the memo and make any necessary changes before this document is distributed to the residents.
The memo that starts on the next page has numerous errors with wording and language, grammar, format, and design (which, of course, means that it doesn’t succeed at being an “excellent” technical document). Using what you’ve learned so far this semester, revise and retype the memo to eliminate all errors. Here are your specific guidelines:
• Do not eliminate any crucial information. You may reword sentences and even eliminate unnecessary ones, but all information must be kept in this one memo—in other words, you cannot opt to focus just on the “parking” information and eliminate the other topics… do feel free to delete entire sentences/paragraphs as needed as long as all the topics in the original version are still addressed in the revision. (You may also invent any details needed to explain a policy, etc.)
• You may rearrange the information as needed, adding headings and other design features/aids to emphasize certain information.
Once you have finished your Memo Revision, submit your work to the appropriate category/folder in the D2L Dropbox. (See the Course Schedule/Calendar for the due date). Make sure you submit in .docx or .pdf format, and double-check that you submit the correct file.
In addition to using the relevant “Writer’s Checklists” provided in the relevant textbook chapter(s), please consult the rubric for this assignment (on the last page here and in the D2L Dropbox folder for this assignment) very carefully. It demonstrates exactly how your assignment will be graded, how many points it (and each aspect) is worth, and what specifically is expected of each element; use it to ensure your work meets all requirements and expectations.
Memorandum
TO: ALL PLAZA RESIDENTS
FROM: The Management
SUBJECT: towing
Effective today, BC (BAILEY CAFETERIA) will tow any Plaza residents vehicles or Plaza visitor vehicles that park on the South end of their parking lot on the West side of their building. One visitor vehicle from Plaza was parked directly in front of the cafeteria’s back door, blocking the way for a big delivery truck coming in this morning, consequently, no one may park over there no more. Residents, we have been over the parking situation over and over, if you or your guests get towed, don’t call me. I’ve put out several newsletters or spoke with individuals about the parking. It is your responsibility to tell your guests where to park. We have had a good relationship with Bailey’s for along time, but when we get in the way, everyone must pay the price for their actions. Stop and think where you park, is it going to be in someones way in the morning? The next time I am called to clear out the cars to avoid being towed because it is blocking a door or driveway at Bailey’s, I promise, I will call the tow truck myself.
We have also been changing the filters and checking the smoke alarm batteries this week and there are those of you that are removing or tampering with your smoke alarms!
Repeatedly we have told you not to take the battery out of your smoke alarm. IT IS AGAINST THE LAW. Do you have enough insurance to cover all your home’s contents in addition to all the contents of several other homes if a fire breaks out in your apartment and because you have no battery in your smoke alarm, no one was warned before it was too late. When your alarm beeps, it means you need a new battery, we have as I have repeatedly told you have the batteries in the office. Come and get a new battery or call and place a work order. There is absolutely no excuse that can be justified for removing or tampering with any part of the smoke alarm that I will accept. If we didn’t have an alarm in your apartment and you had a fire, you would immediately blame us, do we get to blame you when you have removed the battery or tampered with the alarm? Each of you that had removed your alarm battery will be fine $25.00 which is clearly stated and had been explained in several newsletters.
In addition, do not bring rent payments to my home, I do not have a receipt book at my home and I will not return to the office to make one after the office has closed.

This month, several residents put cash in the drop slot of the office, do not do this, for your protection and ours. Get a money order, they can be purchased at any convenience store for $1. When you pay by cash, bring the exact amount of your rent to the office, we do not keep change at the office, if you do not have the correct amount, any amount that is over, will be credited to next month’s rent, we will not make change.
Please do not hand me your rent in cash while I am outside in the courtyard, without having a receipt book. Not a good policy.
Again, it is your responsibility for telling your guests where to park. You know how it fills in and there are no parking spaces because they are filled with guests. I constantly see the same guests parking on the lot, the lot is posted for resident parking with all others towed, I have threatened to tow in the past, but once again, it has gotten out of hand and we are almost full and it takes every space on the lot just so our residents are allowed to park on the lot. Effective today, all non stickered vehicles will be towed with no advance warning. When this happens, perhaps you will want to pay the towing charge to your guest since you did not tell them where to park.
When your guests vehicles get towed, please do not contact me. There will be a sticker telling them exactly where to get in touch with the wrecker service to retrieve their vehicle.
Once again there is trash being left outside apartments overnight and during the day. Please, we take prospective residents thru the courtyard nearly every day and it is very embarrassing to have to pass other peoples trash. If you can’t carry it out, leave it in your house until you can. It will be greatly appreciated
Finally, please remove all mops that are hanging on balconies and on the pool fence. A good place to put a wet mop is in the water heater closet. It is warm in there and the mop will dry very quickly.
 
Assessment Rubric for Memo Revision Assignment (worth 100 points)
(to be used by instructor when grading assignment)

Excellent Good Satisfactory Poor or Missing

Format
(20 points) Perfectly follows memo format with all required elements and nothing more; title (subject line) is clear, coherent, specific, relevant, and effective All required elements included but one or two minor errors in format OR title (subject line) needs to be more specific, coherent, relevant, and effective Missing one or more memo element requirements Missing two or more memo element requirements
Design of Document, Headings
(30 points) Document follows all design principles and is easy to navigate; headings are included and coherent Document follows design principles and is easy to navigate; headings are included but could be more coherent/effective Document requires effort to navigate; few headings are included Document is poorly designed and difficult to read/navigate
Content, Language, and Grammar
(50 points) Sentences and paragraphs are correctly structured; all information is clearly and appropriately presented; appropriate language is used; there are few to no errors with grammar/mechanics Sentences and paragraphs are correctly structured; information is clearly and appropriately presented; appropriate language is used; there are minor errors with grammar/mechanics Significant errors with paragraph structure, presentation of content, language, or grammar, but writing is still generally readable Excessive errors with structure of sentences or paragraphs, language, and/or grammar make document difficult to understand