Fun Facts

I love to read and learn, but I also really enjoy my creative free time! I love to cook and bake (especially two-layer cakes), knit, and sketch with charcoal. One of my absolute favorite things to do is write silly songs to sing while playing ukulele or harp. My favorite animals are sloths, wombats, and the majestic apatosaurus.

About Me

I go to UC Berkeley and am studying Comparative Literature. I'm currently a fourth year. My GPA is 3.9, and in Spring 2013 I received Dean's Honors. I am also the Senior Travel Editor of the Comparative Lit Undergraduate Journal. In the future I would like to go to grad school. Eventually I would really like to be an archival curator, but I always want to be connected with education somehow, and I can see myself being very involved in the education and outreach programs of whatever institution I end up at.

I have been a Writing Tutor with UC Berkeley Residential Programs since October 2011 (excepting my semester abroad in Fall 2013). In this job, I have assisted college-level students with essays for Philosophy, Public Policy, Comparative Literature, English, and Business classes, both upper- and lower-division. I have also worked with junior high students as a volunteer for Writer Coach Connection. This program was more about positive reinforcement than tutoring in a specific subject, but I learned that it is very important to pair constructive criticism with positive comments when working with students of this age who do not have good associations with reading and writing. In general I am comfortable with children, teens, and adults, and am committed to effective tutoring in all contexts.

I have been told that my tutoring style is very gentle and that I am easy to communicate with. I am a big believer in question-based learning, and that it is important for students to come to their own conclusions about their work. It is more meaningful if students are propelled themselves to figure out their ideas, and my job is to simply nudge them in the right direction. Although sometimes it takes multiple sessions, I am not satisfied unless I feel I have augmented a student's confidence in their own skills--this is where real improvement can begin happening, I believe.