About Us
Our Mission
We serve all writers at Oklahoma State University and in the surrounding community through collaborative
writing consultations, a variety of writing-focused programs and partnerships, as well as community engagement projects. Our staff and tutors are committed to the land-grant mission, which emphasizes instruction, research and
outreach to foster agency and literacy for all people.
Michelle Boyd Waters
Interim Director
Michelle Boyd Waters studied Instructional Leadership and Academic Curriculum with
an emphasis in English Education. She teaches Comp I, a Writing Center Pedagogy course,
and heads the Writing Center, where she works with a diverse group of talented consultants
and assistant directors to help make writing accessible for everyone who visits the
Center. As a consultant, Dr. Waters focuses on helping students navigate the rhetorical
contexts in their writing as well as the academic environment. When she is not teaching,
Dr. Waters provides secondary English Language Arts teachers with student-centered
curriculum and frameworks. She is currently studying the high school writing experiences
of college freshmen. You can read more about her research at MichelleBoydWaters.com
Toni Purnell
Assistant Director
Toni is an undergraduate Assistant Director at the Writing Center with a few prominent
positions across campus such as the President of the Xi Mu Chapter of Phi Beta Sigma
Fraternity Inc. & 2025 Mr. Black OSU. He is pursuing a BA in English with a concentration
in film studies and minor in Political Science.
Courtney McEunn
Assistant Director
Courtney McEunn is an MFA candidate at Oklahoma State studying Creative Writing with
an emphasis in fiction. Her work has been published in Red Rock Review, The Dead Mule
School of Southern Literature, 10x10 Flash Fiction Stories, MOONLIGHTING by Lit Pub,
and others. In addition to being an AD at the OSU Writing Center, Courtney also works
as a Graduate Teaching Assistant for the English department. She loves traveling,
reading, writing, game nights with friends, and spending time with her cat daughter.
J. Drake
Assistant Director
Drake (they/him) is currently enrolled in the English PhD program at Oklahoma State
University where their focus areas flux between poetry, gender & women’s studies,
and sexuality studies. Their Best of the Net losing (but nominated) poetry appears
in Full House Literary, Prime Number Magazine, Montana Mouthful, and elsewhere. Drake’s
research areas primarily focus on queer poetics, queer and feminist theories, and
gender violence. Their work within the Writing Center focuses on digital communication, fostering professional
development, and promoting outreach into digital landscapes and faraway places. While
not on campus or presenting essays about queer poetry and social movements, you can
find Drake exploring another country, hosting a board game night, or playing Dungeons
& Dragons with friends.
Victor Adedayo
Assistant Director
Victor Adedayo is a PhD student in Applied Linguistics with experience teaching composition
and working with multilingual students. His research applies corpus linguistics to
examine social issues in higher education, media, and technology. He is passionate
about linguistic diversity and encourages students to embrace their unique language
backgrounds and varieties. Outside of academia, he enjoys watching soccer and playing
video games.