The staff of the Center for Writing Excellence are dedicated to making your visit to the CWE a positive experience.
We welcome you and look forward to working with you!
LEADERSHIP
Program Director
Professor and Director of the Center for Writing Excellence, English
- Phone
- 973-655-7442
- knightm@montclair.edu
- Location
- Bohn Hall
Research/Interests: Rhetorical Theory and Practice, Writing Centers, Writing in the Disciplines, Computers and Composition, American Cultural Studies.
A scholar and practitioner, Professor Knight brings expertise in rhetorical theory and practice, business and professional communication, writing across the curriculum and American cultural studies. She conducts undergraduate and graduate courses at Montclair State University and supervises student teachers. Additionally, she advises educational and governmental organizations on corporate communications topics and develops professional communication programs for a broad spectrum of clients in business, not-for-profit and governmental organizations. Professor Knight has been awarded grants from National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the National Transportation Safety Board and the Wallerstein Foundation, among others. She has also been the Editor of Business and Professional Communication Quarterly since 2010.
Assistant Director
Assistant Director of the Center for Writing Excellence, College of Humanities and Social Sciences
- Phone
- 973-655-7442
- remoldea@montclair.edu
- Location
- Bohn Hall
Areas of Interest: Community writing projects, Women’s Studies, Asian women’s literature, classic monster movies.
Before joining the CWE, Alicia enjoyed working for the Women’s and Gender Studies Program at Montclair State. She likes meeting students, faculty and staff from across campus and learning about their interests. Alicia thinks stories and storytelling are a fascinating and powerful part of our lives, both in their hearing and telling. She encourages writers at all levels to make use of the CWE, for all kinds of writing.
CONSULTANTS
Alice Freddi Beresin
Senior Consultant
Subjects/Areas of Expertise: American and French Literature, Art and Art History, and Learning Disabilities
Extracurricular: Drawing, travel, reading, gardening and going to the theater
This is Alice’s 13th year working at the CWE. Alice also tutors middle school, high school and college students in composition, research and study skills. She has worked with students on the reading and writing sections of the SAT and has helped high school seniors on college essays and applications. A number of Alice’s private clients have learning differences. Alice currently freelances as an illustrator for private clients and has illustrated books for Prentice Hall, Inc., Jossey-Bass, and John Wiley & Sons. Additionally, Alice is on the board of directors of the off-Broadway theater company, VOICETheatre, where one of her duties is editing grants and promotional material.
Alice Mesonzhnik
Graduate Assistant
Subjects/Areas of Expertise: Psychology, clinical mental health counseling, social media marketing and communications
Extracurriculars: Dancing, reading, writing poetry, learning languages, video editing and content creation
Alice graduated from Monmouth University with her BA in Psychology in 2025 and is currently working towards her MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at Montclair State University. Growing up as a child of immigrants, she has seen firsthand the challenges of multilingual writers and is ready to assist each writer with their unique needs. As she enters the helping profession of counseling, Alice highly values empathy, active listening, and collaboration. She aims to tie these values into her consulting work at the CWE.
Ana Hilario
Consultant
Subjects/Areas of Expertise: International studies, politics, poetry, 20th century literature, contemporary American novels, linguistics, magazine and newspaper writing, creative writing
Extracurriculars: Traveling, reading, baking, listening to podcasts, and perfecting the art of coffee making
Ana earned her MA in English from Montclair State University in 2022. She currently works as a proposal coordinator, where she helps bring teams together to develop compelling professional services proposals. Ana values the power of strong communication to connect people and ideas, and she enjoys sharing that perspective with the CWE community as a writing consultant.
Camilla M Finch
Senior Consultant
Subjects/Areas of Expertise: News writing for television, newspapers and magazines. Expertise in economic and business journalism.
Camilla has worked professionally as a journalist in both the television and print fields for 25 years. She rose through the ranks to become a producer at ABC Network News working on the programs, “20/20”, “World News Tonight with Peter Jennings” and “Business World”. She specializes in writing about business and economic issues for both television and print. She is also a founding member of the Lydia Johnson Dance Company as well as a founding member of Youthnet, the after-school program that serves the South Orange and Maplewood school districts.
Idil Ozhan
Graduate Assistant
Subjects/Areas of Expertise: Psychology writing, Counseling writing, Sociology writing, Economics writing, Copywriting, Resume Writing
Extracurriculars: Going on walks, painting, crocheting, attempting to learn French, true crime documentaries, and baking
Idil graduated with a BA in Psychology and a double minor in Behavioral Science and Economics. She is currently earning her MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at Montclair State University. A bilingual writer and speaker herself, Idil has a background in assisting multilingual students. She believes all types of communication to be extremely valuable, and her goal is to support writers in becoming confident in their abilities and sense of style.
Johnna Caporuscio
Consultant
Subjects/Areas of Expertise: Psychology/counseling writing, Sociology writing, and APA formatting
Extracurriculars: Running, yoga, listening to country music, and reading
Johnna graduated from Montclair State in 2023 with her MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. Since then, Johnna has been working as a mental health counselor at the middle and high school levels, helping students navigate mental health and academic challenges. Johnna previously worked as a Graduate Assistant at the CWE for two years and has returned to the CWE as a consultant. Johnna loves supporting writers and encouraging them along the writing process!
Justin Ghansiam
Consultant
Subjects/Areas of Expertise: Business writing, poetry, Creative writing, storytelling, MLA, International Business, Management, Marketing
Extracurricular: Socializing, massive film geek, singer, dancer, photographer, poet, aspiring DJ, and a person who loves to live life to the fullest!
Kristine Witko
Senior Consultant
Subjects/Areas of Expertise: Second language writing, APA format, Praxis or ACT test prep, writing about education or linguistics, reading comprehension, impromptu essays
Extracurricular: Traveling, taking Spanish and Portuguese classes, spending hours in bookstores, trying new hobbies, attempting to dance bachata, and writing
Kristine obtained her BA in English (creative writing track) and received her MAT in Teaching English as a Second Language from Montclair State. For several years following graduation, Kristine split her time between New Jersey and Rio de Janeiro. While she lived in Brazil, she managed a nonprofit that provided educational services to children in a favela. Once she settled in the United States, she worked as a Literacy Coach for the Center of Pedagogy and spent over four years as an elementary school teacher in Brooklyn. This year marks Kristine’s 13th year working for the CWE, and she has greatly enjoyed watching students strengthen their writing skills over time.
Lexi Merring
Consultant
Subjects/Areas of Expertise: First-year writing, personal statements, creative writing, poetry, Gothic literature, American literature, MLA style, and APA style
Extracurriculars: Writing, creating art, reading, learning French, and traveling
Lexi earned her MA in English at Montclair State University. She received her BA in Creative Writing and Psychology from Fairleigh Dickinson University. She has experience freelance copy editing books and reading submissions for multiple literary magazines, and she has published a variety of poems, short stories, and articles. In addition to being a writing consultant at the CWE, Lexi also works as an adjunct instructor of first-year writing. Lexi enjoys helping people feel more confident in their writing, and she hopes that her love of writing inspires writers at the CWE, regardless of the project they are working on.
Paloma Lupino
Graduate Assistant
Subjects/Areas of Expertise: Literary theory, Post World War II literature, MLA format, poetry, speech writing, public speaking, mixed media analysis
Extracurricular: Painting, reading, mixology, taking trips to the MET, trying new restaurants, binging the new TV show that her friends and family have begged her to watch
Paloma graduated with her BA from Montclair State in the fall of 2024 as her senior class commencement speaker. She is currently enrolled in the Master’s program at Montclair for English and working as a graduate assistant at the CWE. During her time as an undergraduate, she aided in founding the first student-run podcast at Montclair, the “Playne English Podcast,” as well as the English Club, “English Breakfast,” a TV show on Hawk Plus. Outside of her extracurriculars, Paloma spent many late nights practicing research skills and developing thesis papers on a variety of literary genres and theories. With her love of writing, alongside the goal to aid in the welcoming community within Montclair, she is elated to be working with the Center for Writing Excellence.
Sofia Andersen Garreffa
Graduate Assistant
Subjects/Area of Expertise: Education, languages, didactics, language acquisition, linguistics, research writing, APA formatting, and bilingualism/trilingualism
Extracurriculars: Horse riding, reading, training at the gym, travelling, and trying new food
Sofia is a Graduate Assistant at the CWE who is currently pursuing her master’s in Applied Linguistics at Montclair State University. She graduated from University College Absalon in Denmark in 2022 with a bachelor’s in Education. After graduating, she worked as a teacher in the International School of Hellerup in Copenhagen for three years, where she taught English and Danish to second language learners. Alongside
her teaching job, she also taught Italian to mother tongue speakers at a Saturday school for Italian international students living in Copenhagen. Sofia is a passionate about working with students that are bilingual and trilingual, as she is one herself, and enjoys supporting students becoming more confident with their writing.
Valerie Saturen
Consultant
Subjects/Areas of Expertise: First-year college writing, American literature, creative writing, journalism, and writing in the humanities
Extracurricular: Reading, hiking, learning new things and going on adventures in New York City
Val received her MFA in Creative and Professional Writing in 2018 from William Paterson University, where she currently teaches first-year college writing. She believes writing is an extremely valuable skill no matter one’s life path or career goals, and she enjoys watching writers develop their ideas and become more confident in their writing. In addition to teaching and consulting, she loves working on creative writing projects, especially writing for young adults. In her past experience as a freelance journalist, she wrote features about current events, environmental sustainability, and a wide variety of other topics. She loves working with all kinds of writers on every type of writing!
GREETERS
Alexis Antico
Head Greeter and Consultant
Subjects/Areas of Expertise: Literature, analytical writing, writing in the humanities, journalism, creative writing, APA and MLA
Extracurricular: Reading, creative writing, and crafting
Alexis graduated from Montclair State University in 2014. She runs a book club with her close friends and enjoys collaborative storytelling. She is an avid reader, enjoys writing short stories, and spends most of her time hanging out with her pitbull, Lulu. One of her main values is to create welcoming spaces for all. Alexis is passionate about helping others and aims to infuse her writing sessions with positive energy and enthusiasm.
Namrata Nitin Amin
Senior Greeter
Subject/Areas of Expertise: MLA, Chicago, South Asian and South East Asian Literature, Creative writing
Extracurricular: Reading, cooking, running, travel, and learning as many languages as possible
Prior to the CWE, Namrata worked at a non-profit organization that aided survivors of human trafficking where she advocated for asylum and family reunification visas. Her time there was spent working with those who spoke little or no English to ensure that their experiences were communicated efficiently and privately to other government organizations that could help further. As a multilingual writer herself, Namrata works as a translator and is excited about working at the CWE and the resources it provides writers, especially to those whose first language is not English. She is enthusiastic about her attempts at writing a collection of short stories, achieving reading goals on Goodreads, and the New York Yankees.