Spartan Writing Camp Staff
Our camp instructors are experienced teachers and Red Cedar Writing Project (RCWP) Teacher Consultants (TCs).
ADMINISTRATORS
Trixie Smith
Trixie G. Smith is a Professor or Rhetoric and Writing at Michigan State University where she is the founding director of GALE: Global Alliances in Literacy and Engagement, which builds on the global engagement work begun over her past 20+ years as a writing center director. She also directs the Red Cedar Writing Project MSU’s site of the National Writing Project which focuses on K- university teachers and the teaching of writing. She is also faculty with the Center for Gender in Global Context. Her teaching, research, and publications are infused with issues of gender, queerness, and activism even as they revolve around writing centers, writing across the disciplines, global partnerships, and teacher training. These often intersect with her commitments to community engagement, embodiment, supporting graduate writers, and the idea that we’re just humans learning with/from other humans (you know, with bodies, feelings, lives outside the academy). Her work can be seen in College Composition and Communication, Praxis: A Writing Center Journal, Writing Center Journal, The Peer Review, Feminist Pedagogies, and numerous edited collections. Her book-length works include Graduate Writing Across the Disciplines: Identifying, Teaching, and Supporting, Building Bridges through Writing, The Pop Culture Zone, and the forthcoming Queer Praxis in the Writing Center: Expanding Intersectional Paradigms. Smith was co-editor of the Fountainhead Press X Series in Professional Development from 2007-2017.
Jill Hoort
Jill Hoort currently is the Literacy Consultant at Eaton RESA. She has been a teacher, coach, and consultant for 26 years at the elementary level in Grand Ledge, Okemos, East Lansing, and Eaton County. In 2015, she became the elementary co-director of the Red Cedar Writing Project. In 2017, Jill took over leadership of Spartan Writing Camp after a decade of teaching camp. Bringing exciting and engaging writing opportunities led by passionate teachers to our local community is her mission as camp leader. In her free time, Jill enjoys spending time with her family and dogs, reading, running, and exploring the great state of Michigan.
TEACHERS
Tania de Sostoa-McCue
Tania de Sostoa-McCue was born in Brazil and has lived in three different countries, but currently lives in Farmington, Michigan. Experiencing many different cultures really opened her eyes and heart, and as a result, her approaches to creativity. Tania loves how playful writing can be. She loves exploring how words can be transformed into so many types of composition. Writing opens so many doors, and she loves working with students to see what is on the other side of each of their own doors. From creating zines and videos to fanfiction, poetry and memoir, Tania loves finding ways to recreate what has been created.
In her professional life, Tania is an assistant professor who teaches first year writing at Michigan State University. Tania is a lifelong Spartan: she earned her Bachelors, Masters and PhD at MIchigan State University. She became a Red Cedar Writing Consultant in 2017. Tania has worked with students from middle school through college and loves teaching students of all ages.
In her professional life, Tania is an assistant professor who teaches first year writing at Michigan State University. Tania is a lifelong Spartan: she earned her Bachelors, Masters and PhD at MIchigan State University. She became a Red Cedar Writing Consultant in 2017. Tania has worked with students from middle school through college and loves teaching students of all ages.
Tracy Grennell
Tracy Grennell is currently a K-5 STEM teacher at Bath Elementary School. This is her third year teaching with the Red Cedar Writing Project Summer Camp. One of her favorite things about teaching writing is seeing students take risks and try new things. She loves using the summer to enhance students’ writing and STEM skills. In her free time she enjoys coaching Girls on the Run and a LEGO FIRST Robotics club called Bee-Botics. Her hobbies include traveling, spending time with family and reading.
Savannah Harris
Betsy Hubbard
Betsy Hubbard has devoted her life to education, with experience spanning from preschool to eighth grade since 1996. Currently a seventh-grade English Language Arts teacher in Olivet Community Schools, Betsy is committed to understanding how students grow as thinkers, readers, and writers across developmental stages. Betsy believes that everyone has a story to share and a voice to tell it. Her passion lies in helping learners of all ages find that voice, especially through writing. She celebrates language in playful, powerful ways and enjoys learning alongside others.
Amy Huntley
Amy Huntley has been a teacher for 37 years. She’s taught every grade from 7th through community college. She retired as an English teacher at Okemos High School in 2023 and has worked as a field instructor for MSU with intern teachers. She joined the Red Cedar Writing Project at Michigan State during its first year in 1993.
Amy has had a lifelong love of story. She’s published one young adult novel through Harper Collins, titled The Everafter. More importantly, she dates her beginnings as an author to her experience as a four year old—before she could write. That’s when she began composing stories by going on wonderful fantasy adventures in her own imagination—often with iconic characters like Babar and Snoopy. These became the basis for her love of writing and reading.
Annette Kelly
Annette Kelly is an eighth grade English/Spanish teacher at Beagle Middle School in Grand Ledge, Michigan. She began teaching 34 years ago, and has taught several different grade levels ranging from third grade to high school. Fourth graders are her favorite! In 2012 she became a Red Cedar Writing Consultant. Writing is her passion, and she enjoys working in the summer at Spartan Writing Camp. Seeing young writers take a idea and create a piece of writing that is uniquely theirs is such a rewarding experience for her. In her spare time she enjoys spending time with her family, reading, traveling, and of course, writing. She lives in Grand Ledge with her husband and 4 children.
Rachel Kenney
Rachel Kenney is a high school English teacher at Grand Blanc High School in Grand Blanc, Michigan. Rachel has been teaching English for 17 years, and she became a Red Cedar Writing Project Teacher Consultant in 2014. Her favorite part of writing is that it is such an outlet and is full of possibilities; her favorite part of teaching writing is that young writers have the BEST ideas! She is reminded by every writer she meets that everyone has a story to tell. Rachel lives in Flint, Michigan, with her husband and their daughter, who is just learning to love writing.
Lindsey Loniewski
Lindsey Loniewski is the Student Success Coordinator at Ralya Elementary. A passionate educator within the Haslett district, Lindsey’s background spans from Developmental Kindergarten and K-1 Special Education to 4th Grade. She thrives on helping students find their voices through creative outlets and building the confidence to lead their own learning. When she isn’t at Ralya, Lindsey can be found camping with her family and friends, singing, strolling through the MSU Gardens, or immersed in a competitive board game. She is thrilled to be joining the Red Cedar Writing Project this summer.
Sarah Prielipp
Sarah Prielipp is a writing instructor at Central Michigan University. She has also taught at Michigan State University and the University of Alaska Anchorage. When she is not teaching or writing, she enjoys making things — food, crafts, home improvements – and spending time with her husband, kiddos, and dogs. She brings a love of making things to her writing classes. Her students frequently have writing-focused “arts and crafts” days where they see the connections among words, images, and making.
Dawn Reed
Dawn Reed believes that stories and words matter. She celebrates the joy of imagination and creativity in writing.
Dawn is an English teacher at Okemos High School and a co-director of the Red Cedar Writing Project. Dawn enjoys working with writers of all ages.
Dawn is looking forward to spending time being creative with writers in Spartan Writing Camp.
Lindsey Ryan
Lindsey Ryan has seventeen years of teaching experience. She loves teaching students in the middle grades, and has taught grades 5th-8th throughout her career. She currently teaches English Language Arts in DeWitt, where she lives with her husband and two daughters. With an English major and a Master’s Degree in Educational Technology, she loves to be creative and share her love of creativity with her students. She has been teaching Spartan Writing Camp since 2024, and is excited for another summer of teaching.
Lori Van Hoesen
Lori Van Hoesen’s first memories are of stories she told herself when she was supposed to be taking naps. She grew up writing plays and stories before eventually deciding to make a career of building writing communities in classrooms. She has worked as a literacy advocate in Michigan schools where she wrote with students, performing her original works and stories from the oral tradition. The Red Cedar Writing Project at Michigan State connected her with other teachers who share her belief that everyone’s story has value. She currently works at Delta Center Elementary School. Helping students discover the power in mastering their own language continues to be one of her greatest joys.
Elana Waugh
Elana Waugh currently teaches Young Fives-1 STEAM and Art at Wilkshire Early Childhood Center in Haslett. During her 25+ year teaching career, she has taught students at all grade levels K-5. She has been involved with the Red Cedar Writing Project since 2016 and has been teaching Spartan Writing Camp since 2017. Elana loves all things art and tries to incorporate as much as she can into her sessions. She enjoys reading, exploring nature, and being creative.
Mary Wilkinson
Mary Wilkinson lives with her husband and her cat Abbott in East Lansing, Michigan, She received her undergraduate and graduate degrees from Michigan State University. Mary is a retired teacher and has taught children from preschool to 6th grade. She’s been a National Writing Project Consultant since 2012 and loves writing each summer with Spartan Writing Campers. In her spare time she enjoys traveling, reading, photography, making pottery, painting, riding her bike and especially writing about her sassy cat.