First-year teacher Roseli Ilano

We’re halfway through the school year, but it’s never too late to get acquainted with the teachers who are the face and spirit of WritersCorps. Meet Roseli Ilano, a first-year teacher who works with students at Mission High School.

What inspired you to work with WritersCorps and what is your background as both a teacher and a writer?
I love writing and I love working with young people so it was a perfect fit. I was inspired to join the WritersCorps team because the program embodies the three areas I am most passionate about developing personally and professionally: empowering young people, sharing the power of storytelling, and building meaningful and transferable skills for the next generation of writers.

What has been one of the most formative creative experiences of your life?
One of the most influential moments in my life was when I took time off from college and lived in the Philippines for 5 months. I was inspired by learning more about my family’s roots, and inspired by the country’s spirit of cultural work. There is a long legacy of artists who use theater, literature, film, and painting to shift political consciousness and build awareness about the country’s social issues. It made me reconsider the power and responsibility of art.

What do you like best about working with students at Mission High School?
My favorite part about teaching at Mission High is witnessing my students step out of their comfort zones to take risks. Whether it means sharing a poem out loud for the first time in front of a large group, or writing about a subject that is personal, I love watching students use their writing as a tool to grow.

Currently, what do you find inspires your writing practice?
I write about everyday people doing extraordinary things, so I am most inspired by strangers and people I come across in my day-to-day life. Yesterday I struck up a conversation with the crossing guard I pass every day and he had such an incredible story. He has been helping children cross the street at the same intersection for 15 years, and now that the school is closing down, he is going to lose his job.

Now that the school year is starting up again, you’ll have a chance to get more acquainted with our teachers. Meet our second year teacher, Anhvu Buchanan, who will be teaching at the Juvenile Justice Center and Excelsior Branch Library for the 2011-2012 academic year.

What has been your favorite experience as a Teaching Artist with WritersCorps?
My favorite experience as a Teaching Artist with WritersCorps is definitely last spring’s WritersCorps event WordStorm. It was wonderful being surrounded by all the amazing participants of WritersCorps. I loved hearing the wonderful work they wrote during the school year, and the books that each site published were extraordinary and beautiful.

Would you say that your teaching style is similar to your writing style?
I would say that my writing style is very similar to my teaching style. As a writer, I’m not afraid to take risks and try different things on the page and with words. I feel as though I’m the same way in the classroom. I don’t mind being creative and different when it comes to creating my lessons.

Who or what have been your most inspirational teachers?
I’ve had two inspirational teachers in my life that I will never forget. The first was my psychology professor at Virginia Tech, Joseph Germana. He was the kind of teacher that I thought only existed in movies. The kind of teacher that would stand on top of the desk and rip up the textbook right in front of you. He didn’t have a computer and used a typewriter for everything. He had never used the Internet. He didn’t believe in grades and once, for another class, made them climb up a tree and yell out the grade they thought they deserved. But what was inspiring about him was his ability to think outside the box. He created engaging and thought-provoking lessons that I still to this day will never forget. Another inspirational teacher for me was Truong Tran at SFSU. He was inspiring in the sense that he went above and beyond for his students. He not only cared about how well you did in the classroom but how you did in life as well. I’ve never met anyone who looked out for their students the way Truong Tran does.

What are you reading now?
Currently, I am reading “The Savage Detectives” by Roberto Bolano and “Say So” by Dora Malech.

What’s your advice to young writers seeking to branch out and become more serious with their craft?
Read, read, and then read some more. The more you read, the better a writer you will become. Not only will it help build your vocabulary, but it can inspire you and introduce you to many different writing styles and voices. Secondly, I think it’s important to find a support system. Find a small group or community of other writers that you can get together with once every few weeks to share the work you’ve written and give you some feedback or ideas to expand your writing. WritersCorps has an amazing Apprentice Program that is perfect for any young writer in San Francisco who wants to become a part of a community of serious young writers.

Meet Minna Dubin, one of the latest additions to WritersCorps’s staff of dedicated teaching artists. This year, Minna is teaching at both Hilltop School and the San Francisco Main Public Library. We asked Minna about teaching, writing, her hobbies, and her advice to young writers.

Name: Minna Dubin

Age: 29

Hometown: Philadelphia

Her favorite thing about teaching for WritersCorps: “I love the diversity of youth I get to work with. I am teaching youth ages 14-22, from all over San Francisco, from many different high schools and colleges. Some speak almost no English, some can write beautiful descriptions that blow my mind. All of them have great stories to tell.”

How she deals with writer’s block:  “I talk to my friends about not being able to write. Usually, through the conversations about what inspires me and excites me, I have an ‘a-ha’ moment and can begin again. Another thing I do is attend a literary event, because more often than not, something that’s read will inspire me to stop moaning and groaning and start typing. ”

What she likes to do when she isn’t teaching or writing:  “I love watching good movies, cooking big pots of hearty food, reading novels of people with messed-up lives, biking to the ocean and back, talking on the phone with my long-distance friends.”

What she is currently reading:  “‘Tasting Freedom: Octavius Catto and the Battle for Equality in Civil War America,’ by Murray Dubin and Dan R. Biddle (Yes, Murray Dubin’s my dad). A lot of it is about free blacks, race relations, and the struggle for rights in Philly during slavery times. Learning the stories that cradle the city in which I’ve spent most of my life inspires and feeds my writing, which is about the racial nuances that inform(ed) my experiences growing up.”

The best advice anyone has ever given her about writing:  ” ‘Honor newborn writing. Treat it with care and respect so it can grow.’ From Caryn Mirriam Goldberg, Poet Laureate of Kansas.”

Her advice to aspiring young writers: “Tell your story. Fearlessly. The world is waiting. And you never know when your story is the one it’s been waiting for.”

A San Francisco native, Antonio grew up in WritersCorps, starting out as a student, then an intern, and now as an alum of the program who works with youth himself at an after-school program. You might recognize him from the WritersCorps poster series on Market Street.

Who are your favorite authors?
Pablo Neruda, Stephen King, Malcolm X, Fidel Castro, sportswriters and Alex Haley

What’s the most important thing you learned in WritersCorps?
It takes hard work to develop and maintain a craft, but writing should never stop being fun. I learned that my work was valuable and I should take time to edit it. I learned to always be ready, to take criticism (and not take criticism) and never stop writing.

How has poetry affected your life?
Hearing poetry has taught me to appreciate every single moment, and to control my thoughts; it’s taught me to grasp every single syllable and meaning an author tries to convey. Writing poetry has taught me to check in with myself, to listen to what my inner voice has to say. Writing is what I leave behind; it’s how I will stand alongside all those who have come before and are yet to come.