CHAYA BABU is a South Asian American writer and educator, recently relocated from New York to New Mexico. Her work focuses on power and oppression, cities, the body, foolishness, individual and collective healing, and more, and has been featured in or at Rowayat, Bellingham Review, The Margins, BuzzFeed, VICE, Open City, the Porter Gulch Review, GO HOME!, and Project for Empty Space, amongst others. She works part time at a Santa Fe art gallery, teaches journalism at the Institute of American Indian Arts, runs her own creative writing workshops, and is learning how to live and create in the beautiful southwest.

VALERIE BONDURA holds a Ph.D. in Anthropology from Columbia University and is the Director of Teaching and Learning at the Jewish Theological Seminary, where she leads inclusive teaching efforts. Valerie also maintains research on heritage, land rights, and colonial processes in the Spanish-speaking world, and freelances as an editor and writer in New York City. She has worked in several university writing centers and taught writing seminars. She has particular experience supporting fellowship applications and academic research writing like theses and dissertations.

KARIN E. CHRISTIAENS is a Ph.D. candidate in Graeco-Roman archaeology at Columbia University. Her research analyzes how architectural spaces both shaped and were shaped by societal change. Karin has held fellowships with Columbia’s Center for Teaching and Learning and taught Art Humanities in the Core. After consulting for the Columbia Writing Center, she served as an inaugural fellow at the GSAS Writing Studio, piloting workshops, groups, retreats, and developing resources in support of dissertation writers. Karin enjoys working with writers to accurately represent their ideas in diverse genres, from personal statements and grants to more analytical or theoretical projects.

MISTEE DENSON is a 2018 graduate of Columbia School of Social Work and a current doctoral candidate at Tulane University. Her MSW concentration was in Advanced Generalist Practice and Programming with a focus on Contemporary Social Issues. She also obtained a minor in law and has worked extensively with justice involved individuals, which provided valuable experience in both legal research and writing.  In addition, she has conducted research, designed and facilitated trainings, and served on various committees regarding the issues of power, race, oppression, privilege, and diversity.  Through these activities, she gained extensive experience incorporating the PROP lens and concepts into various topics, assignments, and writings. 

ZEFYR LISOWSKI is a poet, interdisciplinary artist, and educator from North Carolina. She holds an MFA in Poetry from Hunter College and has been the recipient of fellowships from Tin House Writers Workshop, the Center for the Humanities’ Adjunct Incubator Grant, and more. Zefyr’s the author of the short poetry collection Blood Box (Black Lawrence Press, 2019) and is a poetry co-editor at Apogee Journal. She’s especially excited about trans and queer competency in higher education; de-colonial and anti-oppressive practices; writing across disciplines; and issues of accessibility in writing center spaces, among other topics.

ADAM PELLEGRINI directs the CSSW Writing Center. He developed his understanding of rhetoric and writing pedagogy from years teaching in the first-year classroom, writing centers and community workshops. He has a professional and scholarly interest in exploring the overlap between direct social work practice and student-centered teaching in writing centers. He regularly draws inspiration from CSSW students, colleagues and curriculum.

NATALIE ROSE RICHARDSON is a writer and MFA candidate at the NYU Creative Writing Program. She has degrees from the University of Chicago (BA) and Northwestern University (MA, MFA) and has taught courses in English Literature and creative writing. She has received numerous awards and fellowships and has had her work featured at BBC Radio London, Tedx, WBEZ Chicago, The British Royal Library, The Art Institute of Chicago and the Poetry Foundation, among others.

CHRISTIANA TAYLOR graduated from the Columbia School of Social Work in 2018 with a concentration in Advanced Generalist Practice and Programming. During her time at CSSW, she served as a PDSA Program Coordinator and Power, Race, Oppression, and Privilege (PROP) curriculum developer. She comes to the Writing Center with six years of program coordination, evaluation, and monitoring experience with an emphasis on advocacy and community organizing. She specializes in resume and cover letter reviews, advocacy writing, and research.

CHERRANDA SMITH is a CSSW Class of 2017 alumna from Athens, Georgia. She concentrated in Social Enterprise Administration while at CSSW and served as events coordinator for the Black Caucus. Cherranda has served as a Writing Consultant since Fall 2018 and has experience in digital media, social impact, and community relations.