Writing Center Team

Miles Smith (Rose Hill Graduate Coordinator) Miles is a fourth-year PhD candidate in the English Department, and their dissertation project focuses on rhetoric and nonnormative bodyminds in late medieval literature, with a particular emphasis on gender, animality, and disability. They hold a B.A. in English from Northern Michigan University and an M.A. in English (Medieval Track) from Western Michigan University. While at Fordham, they have tutored at the Rose Hill Writing Center and have taught undergraduate courses in composition and rhetoric.

Hardik Yadav (Lincoln Center Graduate Coordinator) is a fourth-year doctoral student of English. While he is interested in all things English language, he is keener about its queer and postcolonial bearings. He has previously tutored at both the Lincoln Center and Rose Hill writing centers. Now that he is dissertating, he is even happier to receive questions on Bollywood.

Daphna is a second year in the MA program in History (medieval). She received her BA in History and Art History from Hobart and William Smith Colleges, as well as a MAT in Adolescent Education. Her research interest include memory projects in the 12th century, the Holy Roman Empire and its interactions with other political entities, and the building of legacy and legitimacy.

Esme Bikales Esme (pronounced ez-may) is a Specialist Year student at Fordham's Graduate School of Social Service. She has a Bachelor's Degree in Business from the University of Pittsburgh. She is passionate about the use of writing as a therapeutic tool for emotional management and knowing oneself better. She has been working at the Writing Center at Lincoln Center for three semesters now and has tutored students from all academic domains.

Hayley Blair is a Navy veteran with a bachelor's degree in journalism and a master's degree in cybersecurity. She is currently working on her master's degree in English at Fordham. She can help with both technical and literary writing projects.

Diamantina (Dia) Kefalas is a Master's student at Fordham's Center for Medieval Studies and has a keen interest in late Byzantine ethnic and religious identities. As a writing tutor, she is most interested in creating outlines, developing thesis statements, and assisting students in better articulating their own arguments. She is particularly well-versed in the Chicago Manual of Style (CMS) and MLA formats, but is familiar with APA as well.

Sarah Yukiko Ng is a graduate of the Dual BA Program Between Columbia University and Sciences Po, where she studied political science and creative writing. She completed an MFA at Columbia's School of the Arts, where she was an Undergraduate Writing Fellow, teaching a fiction workshop. She has also taught creative writing at a nonprofit on the Upper West Side and worked in writing centers at other universities in New York City. Sarah specializes in working with English Language Learners, and her areas of experience include creative writing, political science, and literature.

Fiona O'Brien is a first year PhD student in the department of history. She has worked with students in the writing center at the University of Toronto, where she received both her BA and MA in history. Her research focuses on rituals and remedies surrounding early modern reproduction, and she is passionate about the value of writing in the development of communicative skills.

Kristian holds a B.A. in Medieval & Renaissance Studies from the University of Albany and is currently pursuing his MA in Medieval Studies at Fordham. His primary areas of expertise are history papers as well as Shakespearean English papers!

Izzie is a first-year Master's student in the Clinical Research Methodology program. She received her B.S. in Forensic Psychology from Arizona State University where her research focused on a variety of topics, including jury bias, eyewitness identification, and forensic mental healthcare. Izzie conducted her thesis on behaviors that lead to 911 callers becoming suspects of the crime that they are reporting. Her current research interests broadly encompass forensic assessment and the impact of the justice system on persons with extreme mental illnesses.

Emily Rostami is a first year MA student studying English at Fordham University. Emily received her Bachelors Degree in English from UC Berkeley. She is originally from Los Angeles and is loving New York City. Emily has always loved writing and connecting with people and is looking forward to helping students with their writing.

Frances Seabrook is a second-year MA student in Medieval Studies. They received bachelor's degrees in History and International Studies from The University of Alabama (roll tide!). Their research is focused on the diverse population and sacred spaces of medieval Syria, and in their free time they enjoy creating comics and writing short stories. They are most familiar with writing in the fields of history, English, theology, creative writing, and political science.

Athanasia is a first-year MA student in Urban Studies. She received her Bachelor’s in Anthropology and International Affairs with minors in sociology and environmental studies. Her academic and creative works have stretched from research on the use of place in cities and rural areas to research on restaurants and their place in modern society. At Fordham, she hopes to continue her anthropological studies in the urban landscape of New York City. Athanasia enjoys reading, writing, trying new foods, and buying trinkets in her free time.

Alex Veilleux is a first-year J.D. candidate. Alex has a MA in General English Literature from Binghamton University, where he also tutored at the school's writing center. Alex previously taught middle school in NYC before deciding to attend Fordham Law, and plans to continue an express focus on education policy. Outside of school, Alex enjoys reading, birdwatching, and cataloging music.

Gianna Welty is a second-year English MA student at Fordham. Having also attended Fordham as an undergraduate, she is greatly familiar with the core curriculum and its requirements. She is particularly interested in early 20th century British literature, especially as it pertains to themes of class within works by the Bloomsbury Group.

Andrea Wilk worked at the writing center last year and loved meeting students and learning about what they were learning about. Having never taken philosophy, theology, business, or social work in college (she went to Vassar, where she majored in anthropology), she feels she’s been given a mini-education in those subjects. Her areas of expertise in tutoring are English, history, anthropology, sociology, art history, film, and psychology. Before working at the writing center, she taught English as a Second Language and writing at Fordham, Columbia, Adelphi, and St. John's, after getting a master's at Columbia. Before that, she worked in book publishing, specializing in children's books. She’s a New York native (she grew up about 25 blocks north of the Fordham Lincoln Center campus) and loves hearing what students from other places think of NYC.