Empowering Expression: Nurturing Voice in Student Writing

"Your writing voice is the deepest possible reflection of who you are. The job of your voice is not to seduce or flatter or make well-shaped sentences. In your voice, your readers should be able to hear the contents of your mind, your heart, your soul."

“Our expectations and experience shapes us. When we write we must find a voice that expresses our sentient self, not some idealized version of a cogent self, devoid of the exacting life-altering lessons that come with enduring a variety of experiences.”
― Kilroy J. Oldster

Kean University Writing Project

“It is what you don’t write that frequently gives what you do write its power.”

- Toni Morrison

Get to Know the Scholars!

Medea B. Chillemi, Esq. L.L.M.

Medea B. Chillemi, Esq. L.L.M.
I am an attorney licensed to practice in New York and New Jersey. However, first and foremost, I am an ongoing student of life, music and culture. I will publish literary pieces in the near future, so stay tuned. I believe that all things are possible with faith and hard work. I am a dreamer with feet firmly planted on the ground. I speak Italian and Spanish.

Emily R. Morris

I graduated from Kean University with a Bachelor’s Degree in English Literature. I am currently a Preschool Teacher for Middletown Township. I have always had a passion for reading and writing and my dream is to become an author and an English professor, but I recently developed an interest in Public Relations. I decided to enroll in the English and Writing Studies Masters program at Kean University where I would be able to gain the knowledge and develop a curriculum that others and myself can utilize to teach the younger generations in a writing-styled classroom. By doing so, I hope to light the writer flame within them

Nives Migliaccio

I received my BA in English Literature Magna Cum Laude from Kean University. I have a minor in Sociology. I’m currently pursuing my MA in Writing Studies. I’ve always been a lover of reading and writing. This passion was something innate within me that helped me to explore, discover and find my true passions in life. My future goals include becoming a English Literature Professor. My dream job would also include channeling my inner Carrie Bradshaw and writing my very own dating/relationship column! - Unapologetic In My Evolution.

I graduated from NYU with a degree in Finance and worked for Forbes Magazines in the statistical department. I am the mother of three talented, funny, noisy children whose antics both entertain and exhaust me. I started journaling when my oldest child was born to record and explore my emotions as I passed through this life-altering milestone. I have since become hooked on writing, especially memoir essays. Pursuing a Master’s degree in English Writing Studies at Kean University will help me learn the many facets of writing and provide me with the tools I need to write my first young adult novel.

Meagan T. Mentor

My professional education began with a B.A. in Early Childhood Education and then a certification in Event Planning. I’m currently pursuing one of my many dreams, which is to earn my Master’s in English Writing. Writing was once a lost passion of mine. I longed for the inspirational excitement of words. Now I have a deep appreciation of how it helps me connect to my inner emotions. Writing is my life’s companion in which it guides me in being true to myself. My new path is to become an author of childrens’ books. I have to follow up my first book, Powerful Pete.

I received my B.A in English Literature from Seton Hall and I’m currently pursuing my M.A in Writing Studies at Kean University. My dreams and goals include: becoming a well-known author, helping/educating struggling learners and making a major impact/contribution to students in urban areas who don’t have access to or receive equal education or educational resources. Writing and reading are one of my lifelong friends and I look forward to tapping into my personal passions as well as furthering and accomplishing my professional goals. I want to develop my voice and help others find/develop their own. I especially think that it is time to give voice and space to those whose voices have been silenced or gone unheard.
Speak Truth to Power.

Fatima Muhammad

Fatima Muhammad earned her Bachelor’s degree in Sociology; with two collaterals: Africana Studies and Training and Development at Kean University. Currently, she is pursuing a Master’s degree in the Master of Arts in English Writing Studies program, also at Kean University. She is a Distance Learning Coordinator and Introduction to Sociology teacher, working with high school students. Fatima was a seminar participant in a summer course with the National Endowment for the Humanities – “Reverence for Words.” An aspiring poet, she is working on a book of uplifting poems.

Patricia M. Dennis, B.A in English

In my journey of pursuing my career and educational goals, I am looking to gain deeper insight into the theory, practice, and research development of how students all over the world learn how to write. With that, I plan to combine these three components in not just understanding, but being an advocate for students globally, to gain equal and extraordinary education within the English Language Arts discipline.

I began my education in acting at Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts in NYC. After graduating, I earned membership into Actors’ Equity Association and The Screen Actors Guild. Later in my life I attended Kean University. I majored in English (BA) and graduated with the distinction of Summa Cum Laude. While at Kean University I was awarded with numerous scholarships and gained entrance in a number of honors societies, including Phi Kappa Phi. Post-graduate, I decided to complete the School for International Training (SIT) TESOL Certificate program. In December of 2019, I will have earned my MA degree in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) from The University of San Francisco.

I am an Asian-American English teacher who is interested in blogging about education, writing theory, social issues, and current events. I am a wife of a professor and mother of three children -- twin boys, 15; a daughter, 18, who is attending Dartmouth College. I graduated from Rutgers University, Phi Beta Kappa, with a major in English Literature and a minor in Asian Studies. I am currently pursuing a Master’s Degree in English Writing Studies at Kean University. Based on my background and life experiences, I am interested in sharing my stories, my ideas, and my research to help improve the world for my children and all her children.

I graduated from Seton Hall University in 2016 with a B.S. in Finance and spent the first few years post grad working in risk management, which I couldn’t leave soon enough. When I was looking to find something more meaningful, I found an affinity for writing when I began writing and performing Stand-up Comedy in December of 2017. It also became clear to me that teaching was something that fit my skill set and that it would be infinitely more fulfilling than what I was doing before, so I decided to pursue my M.A. in English and Writing at Kean University. If I do not end up getting that HBO special at Madison Square Garden, my goal is to go on and complete my PhD in Writing and Rhetoric.

Hello! My name is Kendra Foster, I have a passion for writing where it became my first love from expressing myself, then to creative writing. I received my Bachelors of Arts from Shaw University in North Carolina in Mass Communications in journalism. Also, I was well active on campus where I was the President of Alpha Omicron Chapter of Alpha Kappa Mu Honor Society:http://alphakappamu.org. I’m currently pursuing my Master’s Degree at Kean University studying in the Writing Studies Program in the near future I want to be a Literary Coach or Language Arts Teacher teaching grades 4th-6th.

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