Writing can become frustrating surprisingly quickly. A student may understand a topic but struggle to explain what they mean. A research assignment can feel like a collection of sources with no clear path toward an argument. A blank page can make an otherwise capable student question whether they are a good writer at all. Often, what helps most isn't someone correcting the paper. It's someone helping the student slow the process down, figure out where they're stuck, and discover a way...
Writing can become frustrating surprisingly quickly. A student may understand a topic but struggle to explain what they mean. A research assignment can feel like a collection of sources with no clear path toward an argument. A blank page can make an otherwise capable student question whether they are a good writer at all. Often, what helps most isn't someone correcting the paper. It's someone helping the student slow the process down, figure out where they're stuck, and discover a way forward.
That's the approach I bring to writing instruction. My own path began with a love of literature and language that led to a BA in English Literature from the University of Pennsylvania and an MA in English Literature from the University of Southern California. From there, writing became both something I taught and something I practiced professionally. I taught college writing, including at Pima Community College, and managed the writing center at Los Angeles Trade-Technical College, working with students across disciplines, abilities, and stages of the writing process. I've also taught writing courses online, experience that has shaped how I create virtual sessions that are active, collaborative, and centered on the student rather than simply reviewing a document on a screen.
Today, that teaching experience is complemented by more than a decade of professional writing, research, and strategy work. My work requires many of the same skills students are learning to develop: making sense of complex information, conducting and synthesizing research, identifying what matters, building evidence-based arguments, and communicating ideas clearly and persuasively. That perspective allows students to see writing not simply as something they have to master for an English class, but as a way of thinking and communicating that will continue to matter in college, work, and life.
I work with middle school, high school, and university students on academic writing, argumentative and persuasive essays, research papers, and college appl
