A Memorable Teaching Experience: I worked with a student who had no confidence in his writing skills. Once we had brainstormed ideas for his college essays, we experimented with four or five different hooks to start his introduction. He ended up writing a stunning narrative scene to start his essay, and used similar hooks in two of his essays for other colleges. Once we made space for creativity in the normally rigid essay structure, his writing skills really blossomed.

Personal Rewarding Educational Experience: One course I loved in undergrad had the silliest name but challenged me to read far beyond my comfort zone. Love in the Tropics could easily have been called Colonialism, Socioeconomics, and Gender Politics in Caribbean Literature, but that name wouldn’t have attracted quite as many students. Throughout the course, my Jamaican professor never hesitated to point out how my or my classmates’ readings were limited by our American perspective. I was pushed to read texts with less familiar historical and cultural contexts which forced me to adjust to new schemas of cultural identity and morality.

Favorite Quote:
“Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.” ― Dr. Seuss

Fun Facts:
I will be a published author in January 2018! My debut novel is called Love Sugar Magic: A Dash of Trouble.
I play quidditch, a full-contact all-gender sport for based on the wizarding game, with the Houston Cosmos.
I was involved in theater through middle school, high school, and college.

Interests: Knitting, crochet, theater, quidditch, musicals

Biography: I grew up in Houston and have lived here most of my life. I attended Pershing Middle School and Bellaire High School. I graduated from Rice University with a degree in English and earned my MFA in creative writing with an emphasis in writing for children from the New School in New York. I am also a Texas certified teacher of ELA grades 8-12. I have taught creative writing and high school English, and have five years of experience working as a writing tutor. In addition to teaching, I am also a writer, and my debut novel, Love Sugar Magic: A Dash of Trouble, will be released in January 2018. I am highly proficient in Spanish and moderately proficient in American Sign Language.

Future Goals: I am working on the next book in my series and editing a Young Adult manuscript for sale.

Educational Background:
B.A. with honors in English from Rice University
M.F.A. in Creative Writing from The New School