Faith MacDonald

Anthropology

I study the system of seasonal sheep herding in northeastern Spain as it developed between Late Antiquity (400 AD) and the Late Medieval Period (1400 AD) in relation to economic, political, and climatic trends. To me, writing is all about communication, both with yourself and others. I enjoy helping students discover how different forms of writing can help them discover their own ideas, as well as communicate those ideas to others.

Raul Basilio

Anthropology

Evan DesRosiers

Anthropology

Jihee Kang

Art Education

I’m studying in the Art Education PhD program at UGA School of Art. I am interested in how people make art and create new ideas and how we can teach creativity properly in the education setting. To me, writing is an important tool for delivering my thoughts and opinions in an academic language. I’m so excited to coach writing this year because it is the position that can help students to be more confident with their writing and ultimately enjoy it.

Lauren Bender

Art History

I am a first-year master’s student in the art history department hoping to study depictions of gender and sexuality in the art of ancient Greece. I am also interested in mythology, religious ritual, and funerary art. One thing I love about writing is the way it can clarify your thinking. Although the process of writing and revising can sometimes be painful, my analyses and conclusions in my final draft are always a vast improvement on my original thinking.

Riley Thoen

Plant Biology,
supporting BIOL research courses

I study native plant populations and how their ecology is altered by climate and land use change. One thing I love about writing is having a permanent medium to share my ideas and data. As a scientist, much of my time is spent in the field or lab collecting data. While I enjoy this work, there is often very little to show for it until I analyze the data and write up a narrative. When writing is complete, it is so satisfying to have a shareable product that I poured hours of hard work into. 

Sam Day Briggs

Geology

I study how biotic and abiotic agents of selection interact to influence floral trait evolution. One thing I love about writing is that it allows us the opportunity to convey a deeper, more nuanced, understanding of topics. Writing gives us the space to elaborate on our ideas and provides others with greater context to explore our thoughts. 

Sarah Marvin

Chemistry

Li Xianyang

Comparative Literature

Michael Stefanou

Geology

I study hydrogen gas seepage from wetland areas (Carolina bays) around the southeastern US. I am excited to coach writing this year and watch the students improve as writers throughout the semester. I also hope to improve as a writer myself by working as a coach.

Maggie Neel

History

I study interactive tourism in the mid-twentieth-century American West—theme parks, panning for gold, rodeos, and all that fun stuff. One thing I love about writing is its ability to capture thoughts and arguments in clear prose.

Andrew Craig

History

I study the history of agriculture and environmental movements in the twentieth century U.S. South. I’m excited to coach writing this year because I’ve come to find as student of history that writing is one of the most powerful, and complex, tools humans can use humans to make sense of ourselves, the planet we inhabit, and generate meaningful dialogue and connections with others about our individual and shared experiences. I’m excited to talk more with other students about their experience as writers!

Seaira Lett

Linguistics

I study verbal inflection, sentence structure, and the expression of meaning in a Mayan language called Chuj spoken primarily in Guatemala. I’m excited to coach writing this year because I want to mentor the next generation of linguists and empower students with effective argumentation skills that will serve them wherever they end up.

Dillon Snyder

Mathematics

I study number theory with a particular interest in the algebraic aspects. I’m excited to coach writing this year because math writing is so unique and it’s fascinating to see student’s writing styles develop over time.

Paul Pollack

Mathematics

Dahlen Elstran

Mathematics

I study Mathematics, and have a specific interest in Algebra. One thing I love about writing in Math is seeing how different people prove the same statement differently. It can say a lot about a student and their background, just by reading their proofs.

Brant Clark

Mathematics

Valerio Palamara

Mathematics

I am interested in Applied Mathematics and plan to focus my research on numerical methods and optimization problems. I’m excited to coach writing this year because writing proficiency is essential for success in scientific research. I am thrilled to help students articulate their mathematical ideas clearly and effectively, and I believe this skill will benefit them in any of their future endeavors.

Israel Wilbur

Mathematics

Sreerupa Bhatttacharjee

Mathematics

Arielle Crumley

Music

I study French art song, and my current project intersects musicology, French literature, and feminist scholarship in an exploration of the musical settings of the poetry collection Les Chansons de Bilitis. I am excited to coach writing this year because I thoroughly enjoy seeing students improve their writing skills and become more comfortable sharing their ideas and research through their writing!

Nderitu Kiragu

Music

Matthew Oswald

Philosophy

I study Philosophy, with my main interest being metaphysics, the study of what things are, why they are, and how they are. For me, the value of writing lies in the process of refining my ideas and collecting disparate thoughts into a cohesive framework. What seems brilliant or what seems silly in my head can often turn out to be just the opposite once it’s written down and properly fleshed out.

Nathan Pagel

Philosophy

I study connections between aesthetics and ethics in an environmental context. To me, writing is a way to fully work out an idea. In lashing an ephemeral thought to a concrete expression in writing, we are forced to fill those gaps that would otherwise remain amorphous or fuzzy, thereby coming to better know the content of our own thoughts.

Danielle Kotrla

Philosophy

Within philosophy, I work in aesthetics. I’m interested in studying how our conception of the aesthetic life changes if we focus not on generating the correct judgments about works of art, but on the quality and type of engagement with those works. To me, writing is a crucial way of making sense of the world around us, and this has a direct impact on how we see the world, how we move through it, and how we treat each other.

Emily Tingle

Sociology

Mario Juárez Sánchez

Romance Languages

I study Hispanic linguistics in the Department of Romance Languages at UGA. My field of interest is Sociolinguistics and Second Language Acquisition. I hope to work on how social media is creating a new way of communicating in Spanish and the benefits of studying abroad for students who are learning Spanish. To me, writing is the best way to strengthen our creativity. 

Andrew Mosbo

Statistics

Vishal Routh

Statistics

AliAnn Xu

Statistics

Jess Martinez

Women’s Studies

Jess Martinez is a Geography PhD Candidate and Women’s Studies graduate certificate student. Their research is interested in the intersections of immigrant, disability, and housing justice in Athens, GA and the U.S. South by thinking with Black, Indigenous, and Women of Color Feminist theorists. Beyond academic work, Jess can be found outside either birdwatching or gardening!

Sara Meissner

Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources

I study maritime grassland ecology, working to understand the plants, insects, and soils of a successional ecosystem. One thing I love about writing is conveying both information and enthusiasm about a topic or organism that my readers may not know about.

Courtney Check

Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources

I am a PhD student studying life history trade-offs in migratory birds and the population dynamics of a species called the Painted Bunting (Passerina ciris). To me, writing is the most important part of the scientific process because it communicates what you’ve done. If you can’t communicate your findings, then no one will use your science, even if it is really well done.

Moriah  Silvers

WIP/WWC Partnership

I study how sense of Place is captured through active images in contemporary Appalachian Literature. To me, writing is a mirror that reflects my thoughts back to me so that I can see them more clearly.