Dami Adebajo
Damilola (Dami) Adebajo is an MA student in Rhetoric and Communication Design. She graduated in 2021 from the University of ݮƵ with a BSc in Biochemistry and a French Studies Minor. She has experience working in varied fields, from biochemical sciences to freelance journal editing, and is primarily interested in linguistics and the applications of language in a digital world, especially how we use and mold language to our bidding.
When she isn’t nerding out over grammatical intricacies, Dami enjoys spending her time baking, playing low-stress, slow-paced video games, and learning new languages.
Aisha Ali
Email:aisha.ali@uwaterloo.ca
Aisha Ali is a MA student in Rhetoric and Communication Design. She graduated from a BSc in Honours Biology at the University of ݮƵ before going to Queens for a BEd. She currently works as a teacher in the WRDSB. Aisha's interests lie primarily at the intersection of pedagogy and social justice, particularly the political education of equity-deserving groups within public school systems. She enjoys hiking, working out and baking.
Maria Andrusiak
Joleen Awad
Joleen Awad
Email:j4awad@uwaterloo.ca
Joleen Awad is an MA co-op student in the English Literature program. She completed her BA in Combined Honours English and Cultural Studies, and Psychology, Neuroscience, & Behaviour at McMaster University. Joleen's academic interests include the evolution of romance novels over time, women's fiction and writers, and Jane Austen's influence on the modern novel.
Mohammad Baseer
Email:mohammadnbaseer@gmail.com
Mohammad Baseer is an MA Co-Op student in the Rhetoric and communication of Design program. He completed his BA in English-Editing, Writing, and Media as well as a Communication minor at Florida State University in 2023. Mohammad’s academic interests include rhetorical theory and pedagogy, diversity and equity in composition, as well as in understanding design as a contact zone for intersectional identities.
In his free time Mohammad enjoys baking, cooking, reading, music, and theater.
Elisabeth Bauman
Email:elisabeth.bauman@uwaterloo.ca
Elisabeth Bauman is an MA Literary Studies student. She is a graduate of the University of Saskatchewan with a BA Hons. in English and a minor in Classical, Medieval, and Renaissance Studies. During her undergrad, she spent five years involved in student governance, the last two working full time as Vice President Academic Affairs at the University of Saskatchewan Student's Union. These experiences fostered her passion for conflict mediation, the development of healthy team dynamics, and effective policy work. Her academic interests include studying biblical and classical allusion in pre-1900s poetry, and how narrative structures impact our understanding of power and conflict.
When she isn't reading, Elisabeth enjoys accompanying musicians on the piano, baking, and exploring outside.
Jo-Ann Bonnett
Email:jo-ann.bonnett@uwaterloo.ca
Jo-Ann Bonnett is an MA student in the Literary Studies Program. She completed her Honours BA in English Literature at the University of ݮƵ and Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) certification at Renison University College in 2023. Jo-Ann taught the English language to newcomers after working for many years as a social work administrator. Jo-Ann’s literary interests range from the Renaissance period to Contemporary literature. She maintains particular interest in sociocultural implications of print media development during the Restoration period and of the enduring influences of eighteenth century proto-feminist writers.
When not reading, writing, or working, Jo-Ann walks parks, paths and pavements appreciating both natural and urban landscapes. She enjoys music, movies and laughter with friends and family.
Leith Bulford
Monika Burns
Monika Burns is an MA student in the Literary Studies program. She just completed her BA in English with a minor in History from Concordia University of Edmonton. Her main interests are the Middle Ages, the Early English Renaissance, and the perspective of history found in literature. She also loves to teach and hopes to pursue a career teaching English at either the secondary or post-secondary level.
She enjoys cooking, playing Dungeons and Dragons, and watching hockey in her spare time.
Diana Czarnota
Email:dczarnota@uwaterloo.ca
Diana Czarnota is an MA student in the Experimental Digital Media program. She completed her BA in Honours English-Literature and Rhetoric with a minor in Psychology in 2025 at the University of ݮƵ. Diana’s academic interest in digital media began in 2020 when she spent her first term in a fully online environment. Since then, shifts in the technological landscape have fueled her interest in AI and the ways modern technology may impact both teaching, and creative fields moving forward.
Outside of academic work, Diana enjoys spending time with her cat, and playing solo journaling TTRPGs.
Riani de Wet
Riani de Wet is an MA student in the Literary Studies Program. She completed a BA in English and Psychology at the University of South Africa (UNISA). Her interests include African colonial/post colonial literature, the dynamics between literature and political/societal change, and oral literature and storytelling.
Kc Dickson
Email:k3dickso@uwaterloo.ca
Kc Dickson is an MA student in Critical Media Studies at the University of ݮƵ. She holds a BA in Legal Studies and Sociology (2025) with a Minor in English Language and Literature and a Diploma in Black Studies. Her academic background is complemented by co-op experience in roles ranging from research analyst to student coordinator.
Her research interests focus on the intersections of race, law, rhetoric, and digital media, particularly how historical theories and literature inform evolving digital discourse.
Outside of her studies, Kc contributes to the development of the Black Studies program at ݮƵ and pursues interests in painting, writing, cooking, and music.
Jenna Dobbelsteyn
Email:jdobbelsteyn@uwaterloo.ca
Jenna Dobbelsteyn is an MA student in the English Literary Studies program. She completed her BA in Honours English with a Minor in Psychology in 2024 at the University of New Brunswick, Saint John. Jenna’s academic interests include Canadian Literature and the connection between disability and voice within narratives.
In her free time, Jenna enjoys creative writing, playing the violin, and hiking.
Stephen Folkerts
Email:sfolkerts@uwaterloo.ca
Stephen Folkerts is an MA student in Rhetoric and Communication Design. He graduated from Binghamton University in 2023 with a BA in English, Creative Writing. He has experience in college admissions counseling and public media and relations at his alma mater. His academic interests revolve around the intersection of disability, emerging technologies, and the nature of belief (religious and otherwise) in a socially networked society.
When he's not brooding about one of those topics, Stephen practices art through poetry, songwriting, and film. He enjoys drumming (jazz in particular), parroting YouTube video essayists, and losing at tennis.
Fernando Fuentes Martins
Email:fefuentes@uwaterloo.ca
Fernando Fuentes Martins is an MA co-op student in the Literature Studies program. He completed his BA in Honours Geomatics, a diploma in Creative Writing, and an English minor in 2024 at the University of ݮƵ. Fernando's academic interestsinclude graphical narrative, cultural rhetoric, and game design.
In his free time, he enjoys reading and watching anime.
Jordan Gallant-Turner
Email: j23turne@uwaterloo.ca
Jordan Gallant-Turner (he/him) is an MA Literary Studies Candidate. He has completed both his BA in Honours Classics (2022) and Honours English, Creative and Professional Writing (2024) at the University of ݮƵ. Jordan’s academic interests include feminism, anti-colonial/post-colonial, and resistance literature. Jordan is currently preparing his thesis on Palestinian resistance literature, emphasizing women writers.
Jordan likes to spend his free time with his wife, Erinne, and their three dog rescues, Apollo, Athena, and Artemis.
Kelly Gariepy
Email:kelly.gariepy@uwaterloo.ca
Kelly Gariepy is an MA student in the Rhetoric & Communication Design program. She completed her BA in Rhetoric, Media, & Professional Communication at the University of ݮƵ. Kelly’s background in marketing and product management within technology companies has led to an interest in understanding public perception of advanced technologies, and how that perception impacts our ability to adopt technology to solve socio-economic challenges.
In her free time, Kelly enjoys exploring the many sides of art and design and is interested in architecture, visual art, fashion, and music. Kelly also enjoys travelling to explore new and familiar places.
Laura Grafton
Email:laura.grafton@uwaterloo.ca
Laura Grafton is a candidate for Masters English - Rhetoric and Communication Design. She has completed her BA in Honours English Literature and Rhetoric. Laura has published in the past as an independent scholar and freelance writer with The and . Laura has guest hosted on the “”, “”, and “” by GeekScape podcasts.
Laura focuses on identity politics and representation in comics, especially as it relates to the stories of domestic violence survivors, and queer folks.
You can follow Laura on Instagram at .
Ranita Sinika Harricharran
Email:r2harricharran@uwaterloo.ca
Ranita Sinika Harricharranis an MA student in Rhetoric and Communication Design. She graduated from the University of ݮƵ with a Honours Bachelor of Arts in English Literature and Rhetoric. She graduated in June 2025. She is interested and passionate in how women use literature, rhetoric, and writing as a method to share their lived experiences while advocating for women’s reproductive rights.
In her free time, Ranita enjoys cooking, baking, and sketching.
Sophia Heidebrecht
Email:sheidebrecht@uwaterloo.ca
Sophia Heidebrecht is an MA student in the Critical Media Studies program. She graduated in 2023 from Carleton College (Northfield, MN) with a BA in English and a minor in Medieval and Renaissance Studies. Her academic interests include the popular print and balladry of the early modern period and their intersections with both literary and material history. More broadly, she's interested in works that expand our idea of what qualifies as "literary" -- or even as "text" -- and how the forms (whether digital or physical) through which we present a text impact the way it is received and interpreted.
When she isn't reading, Sophia enjoys playing piano, running, and hanging out with her cat, Sharpie.
Hasna Isase Brito
Email:hdvisasebrito@uwaterloo.ca
Hasna Isase Brito is an MA co-op student in the Experimental Digital Media program. She completed her Honours BA in English Literature, with a minor in philosophy and criminology at Wilfrid Laurier University. Hasna’s academic interests include medieval literature, the socio-political analysis of German folktales, and the application of labelling theory. In her free time, she enjoys watching Spanish novellas, woodworking and writing slam poetry.
Andie Kaiser
Email:a2kaiser@uwaterloo.ca
Instagram:@andiekaiser.
Andie Kaiser is an MA student in English Literature (thesis stream). She graduated in 2025 from the University of ݮƵ with an Hon. BA in English Literature, with Creative Writing and Intensive English specializations. Her academic interests include adaptation studies, 20th-century female writers/poets, and the history of lesbian literature. She is currently working on a thesis about the representation of female loneliness across the works of Sofia Coppola.
In addition to her studies, Andie works as a Research Assistant for Feminist Think Tank, co-led by Drs. Brianna Wiens and Shana MacDonald. She also spends lots of time writing about film as a freelance journalist and critic, having recently covered the Fantasia International Film Festival and Toronto International Film Festival as an official member of the press.
Omnya Keder
Email:okeder@uwaterloo.ca
Omnya Keder is an MA student in the Rhetoric and Communication Design program. She completed her BA in Honours Communication Studies in 2025 with a minor in English literature at the University of ݮƵ. Her interests are within social media marketing and research.
Robert MacIsaac
Email:r3macisaac@uwaterloo.ca
Robert MacIsaac (he/him) is an MA student in Rhetoric and Communication Design. He graduated in 2025 from York University with a BA in English & Professional Writing. In addition to this, he has experience with the process of book publication. Robert's academic interests include queer rhetorics and digital rhetorics. He is specifically interested in the ways that the internet has archived queer culture for future generations, and how this archival work has influenced the landscape of queer culture.
In Robert's free time, he enjoys baking, reading, and playing video games.
Francesca Maiocco
Katie McElroy
Email:k2mcelroy@uwaterloo.ca
Katie McElroy is an MA student in the Rhetoric and Communication Design program. She completed her BA in English - Rhetoric, Media, and Professional Communication at the University of ݮƵ. Katie’s academic interests include women writers, critical discourse analysis, and popular culture.
Elias Mehdawi
Email:emehdawi@uwaterloo.ca
Elias Mehdawi is an MA student in the English (Rhetoric and Communication Design) program. He completed his BA in Communications. His primary academic focus is on racism, particularly as it relates to film, where he draws on his firsthand experiences as an actor. His other interests include rhetoric, discourse analysis, pedagogy and professional writing. Elias also has a profound passion for developmental psychology, consciousness, and literature, with a particular emphasis on Russian classics.
Elias is a teaching assistant at the University of ݮƵ. Outside of his academic pursuits, he is an actor with a strong interest in psychology.
Tanishi Naik
Email:t2naik@uwaterloo.ca
Tanishi Naikis an MA student in Critical Media Studies (formerly known as Experimental Digital Media.) She graduated in 2025 from the University of ݮƵ with a BA in English - Rhetoric, Media, and Professional Communication, a minor in Legal Studies, and specializations across Intensive English, Communication Design, Technical Writing, and Digital Media Studies. Some of her career experiences include content writing for a Y Combinator-backed start-up, marketing for a software consulting firm, and working as an ISTAS21 conference assistant. In her free time, Tanishi likes to play with hanafuda cards, try new types of coffee, and find quiet nooks ideal for enjoying good books.
Vyshnavi Rajeevan
Email:vyshnavi.rajeevan@uwaterloo.ca
Vyshnavi Rajeevan is a MA student in Literary Studies. She graduated in 2025 from the University of ݮƵ with a BA in English (Creative & Professional Writing) with a Technical Writing Specialization. She has experience working in marketing positions across a variety of different industries including transit tech, education tech, gaming and space.
Zoya Randhawa
Email:z2randhawa@uwaterloo.ca
Zoya Randhawa is an MA student in Rhetoric and Communication Design. She graduated from the University of ݮƵ in 2025 with a BA in English Rhetoric, Media, and Professional Communication and a Cognitive Science Minor. Zoya's academic interests include feminist rhetoric, digital culture, and embodied rhetoric. Her other interests include rhetorical figures.
In her free time, Zoya can be found frequenting a cafe, playing video games, or spending time with her dogs.
Tony Richardson
Email:t23richardson@uwaterloo.ca
Tony Richardson is an MA student in the English Literature program. He completed his BA in English Literature at the University of ݮƵ. Tony's academic interests include religion and literature, Shakespeare, and the concept of plays as a literary work.
Tracy Sanderson
Email:tpramaut@uwaterloo.ca
Tracy Sanderson is currently enrolled in theExperimental Digital Media Master's program. She completed her degree at the University of ݮƵ in 2024 graduating with an Honours English-Rhetoric, Media and Professional BA with a minor in Digital Arts Communications. Her academic interest includes visual rhetoric, criticaldesign, and gender stereotyping.
Justine Scheifele
Email:justine.scheifele@uwaterloo.ca
Justine Scheifeleis an MA student in the Rhetoric and Communication Design program. She completed her BA in Honours Communication Studies in 2024 at the University of ݮƵ. Justine’s interests lay within social media and digital marketing.
In Justine’s free time she enjoys going to antique markets, thrifting, and crafting.
Braedon Shaw
Email:bashaw@uwaterloo.ca
Stefania Stachura
Tyler Ulrich
Email:t2ulrich@uwaterloo.ca
Tyler Ulrich is an MA student in the Literary Studies program. He completed his BA with Honours Specialization in History and a minor in Psychology in 2017 at Western University. Tyler’s academic interests revolve around 20th century American literature and online neoreactionism. His other interests include New Testament studies and urban design. In his free time Tyler enjoys attending to houseplants, wine and travel.
Heather Whittle
Email:hrwhittle@uwaterloo.ca
Heather Whittle is an MA student in the Literary Studies program. She completed her Honours BA in English Literature, with a minor in History at the University of ݮƵ in 2024. Heather's areas of interest include historical fiction, Renaissance drama, and how literature is adapted onto screen and into other forms.