Meet Our College Essay Team
Gabi Lieberman-Miller​
Executive Vice President of Write the World
With a history of successfully leading teams at educational organizations and a passion for improving writing outcomes, Gabi Lieberman-Miller directs all operations at Write the World. At the Harvard Graduate School of Education: Language & Literacy Program, she connected academic research to classroom practice by developing a comprehensive educator's resource to improve socioemotional and perspective-taking skills. She has since supported students one-on-one in crafting engaging and effective narratives, and has held directorial positions at several ed-tech organizations. Through these roles, she has optimized training and service quality to help hundreds of students gain acceptance to their dream college. She looks forward to the opportunity to help you and your family succeed with the college essay and beyond!
Janelle Milanes​
Program Manager - College Essay & Workshops
Janelle is an educator and writer whose novels have been featured in the New York Times book review and listed as part of Bank Street College's Best Children's Books. Originally from Miami, Florida, she received her BA in English Literature at Davidson College. Her passion for writing led her to New York City to work at Simon & Schuster, where she gained experience in editing and educational marketing.
After publishing, Janelle pursued a Masters degree in Special Education and taught in K-12 schools for ten years. She has since hosted writing workshops and mentored hundreds of students to help them achieve postsecondary success. Her experience in education and in narrative writing has equipped her to guide young writers through the college essay process and empower them to share their stories in the best light possible.
Jennifer Webb
Assistant Program Manager - College Essay & Workshops
Jen Webb is originally from Charlottesville, Virginia. She attended the University of New Hampshire as an undergraduate and stayed in New England, teaching middle school and earning her M.Ed. in Educational Counseling. She has served as a high school counselor and school counseling director, a collegiate career advisor and internship coordinator, and a school counselor and program director at an online public charter school. She has been an essay specialist with The College Essay Guy and served on the "other side of the table" as a seasonal admissions application reader with Boston University.
With over twenty years of experience in varied areas and levels of the college admissions process, Jen aims to provide individualized and encouraging support during the essay writing process, increasing student self-awareness and empowering them to write an impactful story. In her free time, you can find her reading, walking her dog, volunteering, or entertaining family and friends.
Sara Polsky​
Expert Advisor
Sara is a writer and editor based in New York City. She has a bachelor's degree in medieval history and literature from Harvard College and a master's in education degree from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, where she has also served as a Teaching Fellow. She writes young adult fiction and has worked as a journalist, editor, educator, and college admissions application reader. She loves helping people of all ages tell stories about their experiences.
Rumiko Inoue​
Expert Advisor​
Rumiko (Rumi) Inoue graduated from Columbia University with a major in Philosophy and a Concentration in East Asian Studies. Rumi hails from a multilingual background, being Japanese and having grown up in the beautiful tropical country of Costa Rica. Her experience has spurred her to explore different cultures around the world. As a Princeton in Asia Fellow in 2019-2020, she worked in Laos in an INGO alongside local staff to promote inclusive and quality education in rural Laos. Rumi has also worked at an Education Consulting company in Beijing, China, where she provided one-on-one support to various high school students on the daunting US college application process. She is currently a certified-CELTA English teacher and enjoys working with students from all over the world. Rumi is thrilled to join Write the World as an Expert Advisor and help young writers in a critical stage of their lives!
Helen Grant
Expert Advisor​
Helen Grant first joined Write the World as a young writer, just as she was beginning to consider her own college applications. Her experiences on the site inspired and equipped her with the confidence to express herself academically. She is thrilled to return as an Expert Advisor and Workshop Mentor, eager to guide others on their writing journeys.
Helen has recently completed her BA in History and Modern Languages at the University of Cambridge. She gained valuable experience working abroad as an editorial assistant at Hermès in Paris. In addition to her studies, she served as a senior editor for The Cambridge Journal of Issues in Law, Politics, and Art, and was the Deputy Art Editor of The Mays, an anthology showcasing creative work from students at the Universities of Cambridge and Oxford. Passionate about culture and education, Helen believes that strong writing and enthusiasm can open doors to endless opportunities.
Sarah Garfinkel​
Expert Advisor​
Sarah is a writer, editor, and educator, and has written for multiple publications including The New Yorker and McSweeney's. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Spanish from the University of California, Davis and a Master’s of Education in Language and Literacy from Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE). She is now a Teaching Fellow at HGSE where she teaches personal narrative and opinion writing, learning development, and facilitation. She has developed curriculum and enjoyed teaching in K-12, higher education, and nonprofit settings. Previously, she led college access programming for teens in New York City, and is currently doing research that focuses on metapragmatics and irony comprehension. She loves helping writers craft compelling college essays that feature their wonderful talents and strengths.
Sasindie Subasinghe
Expert Advisor
Sasindie is a former young writer and community ambassador at Write the World. She is the poetry winner of the Climate Awards hosted by Write the World in partnership with Seventh Generation. Sasindie first discovered her love for language when she was a student at the Wendy Whatmore Academy of Speech and Drama. In school, she studied English literature and served as a writer and editor for the literary journal of Musaeus College. As a poet and editor, she understands how an authentic voice paired with the right language can tell the most compelling stories, and she looks forward to helping you craft an unforgettable essay.
Madison Zuñiga
Expert Advisor
Madison Zuñiga is a recent graduate of Concordia University Irvine, where she earned degrees in creative writing and studio arts. During her time at university, she guided fellow students through the writing process in the on-campus writing studio. Madison was also a young writer on Write the World, where she deeply valued the global connections it fostered and the opportunity to engage with diverse perspectives. She now serves as a College Essay Reviewer for Write the World, where she’s passionate about helping young writers find and communicate their unique narratives during the college essay process. Madison enjoys supporting others in expressing their experiences and is excited to continue offering meaningful guidance to students in their writing journeys.
Scott Sonnenberg
Expert Advisor​
Scott has loved reviewing for Write the World since 2019. A graduate of Columbia University with majors in Economics and Art History, Scott brings a multifaceted background and analytical eye to the improvement of young people’s writing. A member of GrubStreet’s Novel Incubator, he is currently at work on his first novel.
Scott credits Expert Reviewing with shaping his own growth as a writer, helping him strengthen both his prose and storytelling. Through his work with Write the World, he’s found an ideal way to give back—guiding students to craft authentic, compelling narratives that reveal their identities, strengths, and character with confidence and clarity.
Angelina Nguyen​
Expert Advisor​
Angelina was a former young writer on Write the World, where she discovered her passion for reviewing student writing and won Best Peer Review twice. As one of the first Alumni Ambassadors for Write the World, she established the Senior Peer Reviewers program which brought other former writers back on the site to provide further peer reviews. Angelina completed a Bachelors in Music Education with Honours at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. As a student, she actively contributed to the University of Sydney's Honi Soit Newspaper by writing creative, perspective and culture articles. Angelina has also created a variety of educational resources, ranging from a poetry analysis guide with ATARNotes to Trials examinations for high school students. She currently works as a middle and high school music teacher and is excited to support college applicants and help realize their creative visions.
Vivian Zhi
Expert Advisor​
Vivian is an undergraduate student at the University of Toronto majoring in English and Book & Media Studies. Beyond academic pursuits, her journey has been shaped by hands-on editorial experience. As a former intern at Renaissance Press and Canadian Mennonite University Press, she honed her skills in acquisition editing, crafting promotional copy, and building audience connections. Vivian's commitment is further evident in her volunteer work, such as serving as a Community Ambassador at Write the World, where she guided young voices to craft authentic personal essays.This passion fueled her role as Publishing Director at INKspire, where she spearheaded the Writer Fellowship Program, nurturing 20 writers and streamlining operations. Vivian looks forward to continuing to help young writers create a personal essay that authentically captures their story and spirit.
Vani Dadoo
Expert Advisor​
A former writer and peer review ambassador on Write the World, Vani serves as an Expert Reviewer and College Essay Advisor along with being a part of the Editorial Team. Hailing from Mumbai, India, Vani discovered her passion for writing in 2015 at Write the World, especially in the genres of environmental poetry and creative non-fiction.
She is the winner of the 2018 Travel Writing Competition and Save the Earth Poems, and her poetry has been featured by PRI's The World, an international public radio program in Boston and by C40 Cities for UN International Day of Clean Air. Her pieces have been published in the environmental anthology Writers on Earth as well as Write the World Best of 2017: Young Voices Across the Globe. Vani graduated from Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands with a bachelor's degree in Aerospace Engineering.
Ruth Foote
Expert Advisor​
Ruth discovered Write the World at age 13 and instantly fell in love. Her passion for giving thoughtful feedback blossomed that same year when she won Best Peer Review for the Flash Fiction Competition—a skill that has only deepened over time. Since then, she has contributed to the community as a Community Ambassador, Senior Community Ambassador, Intern, and Expert Reviewer.
Her work has been published in several anthologies, and she has earned recognition in multiple Australian writing competitions including the Henry Lawson Short Story & Verse Competition, as well as Minds Shine Bright. Now, she hopes to further inspire and encourage young writers to draft their dreams into reality through the perfect college essay.
Annabella Twomey
Expert Advisor​
A former member of the first Youth Advisory Council at Write the World, Annabella Twomey now serves as an Expert Advisor with the College Essay Program. Annabella graduated from Middlebury College with a BA degree in English. While at school, she also studied French literature and wrote her thesis on adolescent coming-of-age and mental health in classic American literature.
Her interest in the college essay stems from its opportunity to help writers find their unique voice and distinguished story through analysis of their backgrounds. She looks forward to helping young writers develop their inspiring and thoughtful stories.
Eleonora Grenfell
Expert Advisor​
Eleonora graduated from Williams College with a BA degree in English and History. As an undergraduate, she worked as a peer writing tutor, helping students brainstorm, draft, and revise their writing assignments in a variety of academic fields. As a research assistant and thesis writer, Eleonora wrote extensively in the area of history, which sparked her interest in the role of personal narrative and social justice in nonfiction writing. In her previous experience as a volunteer college essay tutor, she uncovered her passion for helping young writers find creative ways to share their unique stories in their own voice. Eleonora currently works as a special education teacher at an elementary school near Boston, and she looks forward to partnering with young writers in the college application process once again!
Enling Liao
Expert Advisor​
Enling has been a valued member of Write the World since 2019, contributing her editorial expertise and passion for storytelling. With experience as both a Managing Editor and a web content assistant at two literary magazines, she has developed a keen eye for detail and a deep understanding of the writing and editorial process. Her work in these roles has allowed her to help shape diverse voices and narratives.
In addition to her editorial work, Enling is currently pursuing a degree in Data and Government at the Australian National University. Enling is deeply committed to helping students navigate the essay writing process, encouraging them to explore their pivotal life moments and express their thoughts in a clear, meaningful way.
Maggie Tamtam
Expert Advisor​
Maggie is an Expert Reviewer and College Essay Advisor at Write the World, where she combines her expertise in academic writing with her passion for nurturing young writers. She holds a BA in Environmental Science from UMass Boston, where she developed a strong foundation in research and communication as a research assistant and writer.
Maggie is eager to help college essay writers refine their ideas and structure their thoughts into concise, compelling narratives. She understands the importance of balancing academic precision with creative expression. Maggie looks forward to empowering students to craft essays that not only highlight their intellectual strengths but also showcase their unique voices and perspectives.
Violeta Nicola
Expert Advisor​
Violeta is an Expert Advisor at Write the World, where she leverages her extensive background in international relations and diplomacy to support aspiring writers. She holds a BA in International Relations and an MA in Security and Diplomacy, equipping her with a deep understanding of global issues and effective communication strategies. With over nine years of experience in journalism, Violeta has collaborated with numerous international publications and non-profits, allowing her to cultivate a diverse skill set in content creation and storytelling.
In addition to her professional work, Violeta enjoys creating engaging content for her literary social media accounts, where she shares her latest reads and literary insights with her followers. Her passion for literature fuels her desire to connect with others through the written word. Violeta is excited to help writers enhance their college essays, guiding them in articulating their unique perspectives and experiences.
Georgette Nicolosi
Expert Advisor​
Georgette is an Expert Advisor at Write the World, where she brings her diverse academic background and professional expertise to help aspiring writers. She holds a BA in Philosophy, as well as master’s degrees in Marketing and Library and Information Science. As an academic librarian and faculty member in the University of Missouri System, Georgette regularly publishes research, which has strengthened her ability to convey complex ideas clearly and effectively.
Passionate about empowering writers, Georgette focuses on helping them develop strong, persuasive essays that combine critical thought with creativity. She understands the importance of crafting compelling narratives and is dedicated to guiding students in expressing their unique voices. Georgette looks forward to collaborating with writers to help them create essays that resonate with admissions committees, ultimately supporting their academic and personal aspirations.
