Experience Summary
Recently graduated from the University of Southern California with a degree in English (creative writing) and film. Enjoy teaching students and assisting in their development academically through hands on interaction. Worked as a tutor for two years in high school and one in college within Americore’s CYFC program, with a cumulative focus on reading, grammar, and comprehension.
Teaching Style
The education of children is of paramount interest to me, and during my work as a tutor at the Audubon School in South Central, Los Angeles, I realized the importance of making education personal. Many students do not have access to the one on one aspect of instruction that can prove paramount to the development of individuated talents. For this reason, I consider the position of tutor to be of utmost importance. My love for art, and my compassion for learning, comes across in the way I work and the way I teach others. As a case example, while I was working at the Audubon School I discovered one of its students, currently in the seventh grade, had dyslexia, a condition that was seriously hampering his development within the domains of reading and comprehension. This moment was eye opening for me. I realized then the overarching value of personal interaction between student and teacher, and the need, in certain cases, for instruction beyond the classroom itself. This was and is especially true in those situations where the school system itself might be lacking or, to a degree, neglecting, consciously or unconsciously, to care for students who require more individuated attention.
My Hobbies
During high school, I played three sports (baseball, basketball, and crew), and to this day am extremely active, considering the development of the body as valuable as that of the mind.
Other Comments
As a recent graduate of USC's English creative writing program, my primary interest is the craft of writing itself, and I am currently in process of writing a novel and a short story collection. My first short story collection is entitled “Claymen, Metalmen,” and draws on previous works and stories written during class and free time. Includes short story “Ares,” which was submitted for the Edward W. Moses Undergrad Writing Competition. Plan to finish in the upcoming year.
My first novel is entitled "Icarion," and is planned as the first book in a series with the overarching title, "Heart of Adam." It is structured as a modern day realist novel evolving into a pseudo future, focused on post-structural sentiments regarding sexual evolutions and the deconstruction of western religious myths. It utilizes a stream of consciousness style inspired by Faulkner and Joyce, and also utilizes my background in film to approach the domain of writing itself with a more postmodern aesthetic (certain passages contain sequences synced to music, as well as large portions designed technically as virtual screenplays---the hope in the end, to is to make the move from novelist to filmmaker).
These writings reflect my respect for the place of writing as an art, and perhaps more than anything else indicate my belief in fiction as a domain for both the improvement of cognitive skills, personal discipline, and the articulation of interest in the cultural transformations of our day. I am eager to use the skills I have acquired as a writer and student to improve general comprehension skills and also, if I can, instill a love for writing and reading itself.