My Work

Some of my favorite pieces are behind paywalls, but here are some accessible links to my work:

Druid Hills Education Foundation

I got to shadow the school-based therapist at Druid Hills High School and write a long-form story, Ms. Hamilton’s Day, as part of a campaign to continue funding her position. It opened my eyes to the extreme need for mental health services at all schools. I learned that there is a state program that provides some school-based therapists, but there are not nearly enough therapists to begin to meet all the need. Ms. Hamilton said: “There’s not enough support, because everybody needs support.” I recorded an audio version on Loom for people who prefer to listen to a longish story.

Intown Cares

I was excited to partner with Michael Baxter of Versal Communications on the rebranding of Intown Collaborative Ministries, an organization that helps people living outdoors get into housing and also operates a food pantry and delivery service. I interviewed stakeholders, brainstormed names, and worked with Michael and the Intown team on a new brand identity: Intown Cares: We Work to Find a Way.

My thoughts on AI and college essays

The AJC asked me to write a piece on AI and college essays, and govtech republished it without a paywall. In short, I am still doing what I have always done: encouraging students to have faith in their voice and write their own essay. I have been quoted several times as an expert on college essays, as I have provided private essay coaching services for seven years. My original students are now in the workforce and on LinkedIn!

My coverage of reading in the 1990s and 2000s

Just before a podcast exploded, exposing professors of reading who knew their programs were putting up obstacles for children learning to read, I wrote this piece about confirmation bias and how I got the reading story wrong when I was an education journalist at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. This piece was widely discussed on Twitter and contributed to a broader conversation about normalizing self-reflection.

Invisible Food Pantry

During Covid-19, I became concerned about food security as many people did. I got together with neighbors to bring a small food pantry to our community. When that did not work out, I realized we already have well-stocked food pantries in every community: grocery stores. I founded the Invisible Food Pantry, which gives $100 grocery store gift cards to college students struggling to make ends meet. I created the website and all marketing collateral myself. We give away 70+ gift cards every year and just held our first fundraiser, stitch + thrash.

El Refugio

El Refugio accompanies immigrants at Stewart Detention Center and their loved ones through hospitality, visitation, support, and advocacy for a just immigration system. I work full-time for El Refugio, telling the stories of the people we work with in ways that protect their confidentiality when necessary and always honor their dignity. This is a news release I wrote about a person who was able to return home after El Refugio and other organizations advocated for his release. This is a zine I made as an educational tool for students in grades 2 +.

Here is a blog post about our hospitality and visitation work. More of my storytelling can be viewed on our Instagram and Facebook accounts. I came up with a brand story I have used throughout our fundraising communications: Immigration detention stole their dignity. With your gift, you give some of that dignity back.

Second Serve Resale

I am the board chair of this resale nonprofit, and I never miss an opportunity to string words together. I wrote about thrifting with my family in Italy and receiving my grandmother’s wedding ring.

PhilanthropyATL: Engaging the Next Generation in Giving

The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta hired me to write the copy for this booklet on kids and philanthropy. The goal was a tool philanthropists could use to teach philanthropy to their children and grandchildren. I love this booklet’s innovative design and was thrilled when it one a Phoenix Award from PRSA-Georgia in 2018.

redefinED

I had the opportunity to work on the branding of a brand new nonprofit focused on equity in education. Although the client did not select any of my ideas for their name—they already had redefinED in mind—they did choose my tagline. And, seven years later, redefinED is still using it: Every student. Every school. Every community.

Emory Lawyer

I have written many stories for Emory Lawyer magazine, including this one about an alumnus who made a film about tigers and this one about outdated immigration laws creating a brain drain.

College AIM

I am a volunteer with this organization, which supports students to and through college. I wrote this press release for a new program that provides bridge funding so students don’t have to incur student loan debt. I am now a volunteer with this program, mentoring a student through the college application process.

The Seavey Clinic at Emory Healthcare

I partnered with Michelle Hiskey to update this premier clinic’s website with bios that show the prospective patient a fuller picture of the medical professional than a typical bio. Here is one bio I wrote, and here is another.

The Lupus Initiative

The Lupus Initiative needed a deck aimed at general practitioners, who might not think of lupus as a possibility in patients with certain symptoms. In addition to writing the copy and working closely with the designer, I came up with the theme: When you hear hoofbeats, you are taught to think horses not zebras. For many women, lupus is a zebra. But when your patient is a woman of color in her childbearing years, lupus is not a zebra, it’s a horse. I later adapted the deck for use in the Native American community.

Georgia Medical Foods Coalition

I produced this advocacy video for the Georgia Medical Foods Coalition, highlighting a federal loophole that allows insurance companies to deny coverage of lifesaving medical food.