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Gi'no Or'lan'di (jee'noh or·lan'dee ) n. 1 [Formal] a teacher, particularly that of creative writing, esp. with the Storyboard program at Southwest Middle School and the Boys and Girls Club (see BRILLIANT MINDS) 2 a lover of words and dictionaries 3 [Informal] one who finds pleasure in winding sentences, unfolding roads, skies wide enough to rent space in, new places, old places, places that make you forget that you’re anyplace at all, fiction, poetry, empty pages, and long, multi-claused lexicon definitions 4 an Italian male, perceived gen. as obsessively neat, categorical, organized, etc. 5 [Slang] the shiz. —vi. 1 to dance while making coffee in the morning, often in sporadic, inexplicable ways 2 to forget what you were about to say, even though it was just on your 3 [Informal] to love literature, God, and life —gi’·no or·lan’·di·ness, gi’·no or·lan’·di·o’·ci·ty adj.

Eleanor Liu has tutored elementary- through high-school students in everything from Marx to math, though she feels most at home helping people write. At Yale, Eleanor majored in English with a Writing Concentration, and won prizes for both her fiction and her academic essays. Her only published piece is a fifty-word “very short story” about romance and snot, written while studying abroad at Oxford. Under the auspices of the Bates fellowship, she spent a month in England’s Lake district, studying Wordsworth and walking everywhere. She hopes someday to go back. She is now back in New Haven working for Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now (ConnCAN), a education nonprofit dedicated to policy-oriented research and advocacy.

Soukprida Phetmisy, better known as Victoria, graduated from the Savannah College of Art and Design with a B.F.A. in Writing and a minor in Arts Administration. She fondly enjoys language, writing, and the arts and the lasting affects of each on our youth and women. She's also a public-radio-literary-journal-cloudspotting-chai-drinking junky. She can usually be found perusing the sale racks at any book, craft, or gadget store and is often seen luring cats into her arms, though she is allergic. She loves a good, quiet Sunday sipping tea alongside her plethora of puppets and stuffed animals, while discussing (with them) the convolutedness of space travel, literature, and inner-workings of Great Literary Genuises. (Usually this means perusing McSweeney's.) Presently, she is an intern with the Ottawa Area Intermediate School District and will be moving to NYC in the fall to intern with Dancing in the Streets, with more hopes to get her radio-junkied foot in the door with StoryCorps. Victoria taught at Heard Elementary as their lead teacher and assisted Sarah Bates at Oglethorpe Charter School in the fall of 2009.

Adeeba Afshan Rana is a South Asian-American poetic activista. Her journey began in pre-school where she championed the other girls of the playground, a red crayon clutched in her raised fist. Today, she works diligently to cultivate the voices of her people. Adeeba has been hooked onto conversations of women and power, art and activism since taking the stage at the Apollo in 2004 as the winner of We Got Issues! hottest rant contest. She also works closely with many Social Justice organizations, educating and inspiring young people to use their voices in action, protest, praise and power. She recently finished her BA in English at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and aspires to be the next goddess of knowledge. 

Harlan Whatley is native of north Louisiana and graduated from Loyola College Prep in Shreveport, receiving his B.A. in English from the College of Charleston and his M.F.A. in Integrated Media Arts from Hunter College of the City University of New York. After residing in the New York City area for nearly twenty years, Whatley relocated to the Georgia low country in 2008 and currently resides in Savannah. Since 1989, H.D. Whatley has been a freelance writer for various print and on-line publications. His non-fiction writing includes book reviews, film reviews, wine reviews, academic papers and articles on military history. On the fiction front, Whatley has recently published a short story (The Island of Feral Cats), some poetry (Daytona Dad) and is currently working on a novel (City of Steeples). Whatley has taught as an adjunct assistant professor in media and communications at Hunter College and Manhattanville College. Currently, he writes wine reviews for Examiner.com.

Tanya Hodges is a Savannah native addicted to reading and writing. When her grandmother told her “Always keep a book by your side,” she sincerely took it to heart. Surrounded by a family of educators, it seemed as if she had no choice but to pursue the same goal. Even though she has a B.A. in Psychology from Mercer University, she is currently pursuing Teacher Certification in Secondary English at Armstrong Atlantic State University. After serving as a volunteer with Royce Learning Center, an adult literacy organization, for over 15 years, Tanya realized she was born to teach. She also serves as a tutor for the AVID program at her alma mater Jenkins High School. “I love to inspire hesitant readers to take chances with literature. The smiles that come with successful attempts are what I live for; the frustration accompanied with unsuccessful attempts motivates me to persevere.”

Jessica Alberici is a senior in the English program at AASU. She loves helping children in any way possible and believes that is God's mission for her life. Writing is one of her passions, mostly poetry, but as a senior, the only thing she has been writing lately is papers. Originally from Shelby, North Carolina, Jessica has lived in Savannah nearly seven years and has decided she never wants to leave—except when she is traveling within the US and outside of it, which is pretty frequently. Her favorite literature is currently Milton's Paradise Lost, but she says 'favorite' is something that changes every time she reads something really incredible, which happens frequently when she is teaching with Deep.

Nikki Smith was raised in the small Leave-it-to-Beaver town of West Milford, New Jersey by two free-lance musicians. She graduated Cum Laude from the University of Scranton as a humanities junkie, majoring in History with minors in Art History and Philosophy. She believes in the importance self-expression, and hopes that she will aid young minds in this endeavor through the art of writing. She identifies her alter ego as a bizarre hybrid consisting of Ann-Margret, Cher, Audrey Hepburn, Karen Carpenter and Jonathan Harris, describes her baggage as Louis Vuitton traveling cases, loves kitties, and honestly believes she could thrive on a diet of coffee and hummus.

Christopher Berinato, a “Novelist”, has not actually completed his novel, but he will talk incessantly about it if you give him the opportunity. Ask him about it at your own risk. Christopher has written about music for the now defunct Murmur Magazine, and was the recipient of the Lillian Spencer Fiction Award for his short story “Lips and Teeth.” Christopher graduated with a BA in English from Armstrong Atlantic State University. He enjoys reading big, fat 19th century novels, post-colonial literature and science fiction. He has been a fixture of Downtown Savannah for over a decade, so you probably already know him.

Abigail Miles received her B.A. in art from Agnes Scott College and her M.A. in art history from Savannah College of Art and Design. She has worked for The Girl Scout Council of Savannah, Naples Art Association, and taught art at Royal Palm Academy and The Boys and Girls Club of Collier County. Abigail enjoys teaching and taught with Deep this summer at the Habersham YMCA. She is currently pursuing her interest in photography and writes a blog dedicated to her work with toy and polaroid cameras.

Emma Bartholomew was born in London, England, but has grown up on both sides of the pond. After getting her B.A. in English and Philosophy from Muhlenberg College in Allentown, PA, she completed an M.S.c. in Creative Writing at the University of Edinburgh. Emma is currently living in Savannah, GA, but will return to Edinburgh in January 2011 to begin work on her PhD, focusing on poetry and cartography. She has been published in various literary magazines, and her first chapbook will be released by Forest Publications, Edinburgh, in February 2011. When she is not writing, Emma teaches poetry and accrues extensive late fees from a plethora of libraries.

Brittaney Harden is the kinda girl who eats apples and throws the apple meat to the grass so that the squirrels and ants and even the grass may have food for winter. She tends to claim things over her life before they actually exist and considers herself a certified expressionist. She is happy to share her gifts in writing and hopes the girls of Scott Alternative will experience the freedom in expressionism. Her favorite quote “How simple a thing it seems to me that know ourselves as we are, we must know our mother’s names.” –Alice Walker. Her favorite self authored quote is currently “Forgiveness comes to those who appreciate what still remains.” She says about her work that it is etched so deeply to the tablet of her heart, that she considers herself a living book open to those who care to read, or not it’s their choice. Brittaney will be graduating from Savannah State University in the spring of 2011, but first she will purchase her passport in October of 2010.

Margaret Emanuel is an artist, writer and aspiring social activist residing and sometimes earning income in Savannah, Georgia. Originally from Washington D.C. she graduated from The Savannah College of Art and Design in 2007 and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in mental health counseling. When she isn’t teaching Judith Butler to middle school girls in West Virginia she volunteers for Deep and the Rape Crisis Center of the Coastal Empire.

Zavieta Russell (a.k.a Za-V) is from Atlanta, GA. She grew up with three sisters and one brother. When she was twelve years old, she started writing poetry and participated in a City Poetry Contest and won second place. Za-V loves watching comedy movies, bowling and hanging out with my friends. She's a senior majoring in English Language and Literature at Savannah State University University, and wants to be a teacher later in life. Za-V is passionate about young adults being able to express themselves through writing because writing creatively is fun! She taught with Deep at Hubert Middle School in Spring 2011, at the Boys and Girls Club–Frank Callen unit as an intern in Summer 2011, and at Bartlett Middle School in Fall 2011/

Margaret Coughlin is an artist/photographer who has always indulged her love for art and literature. Margaret holds a BA in English from Hunter College, where she was awarded the Helen Cone Gray Prize for English Composition and the Rothschild Scholarship for Graduate Study. While living in New York City, Margaret was a volunteer ESL instructor at El Centro de Educación de Trabajadores, a federally-funded program providing language and computer classes for immigrant workers in New York’s garment district. She was also a computer analyst and software trainer in order to pay her rent. Since relocating to Savannah in 2002, Margaret has earned a BFA in Photography and was the Photography Department’s first Valedictorian upon graduation in 2005. For the past year, Margaret has been a volunteer literacy/GED tutor at St. Mary’s Community Center and a private tutor for Club Z.

Xavier Turner, Savannah State University, taught at the Frank Callen Boys & Girls Club from in Fall of 2010 and Spring 2011.

Allison Ramirez, Savannah College of Art and Design

Erin Boast, Savannah State University

Jade Pinkston, Savannah State University

Adrian Dunmeyer, Savannah State University

Tiesha Cobin, Savannah State University

Melissa Sanso

Erin Chen

Katie Martin, Armstrong Atlantic State University, interned for Deep in the summer of 2011, teaching daily at the West Broad Street YMCA.

Sophia Basaldua was born in California but raised on a coastal island in Georgia. She holds an Associates Degree in Liberal Arts from Oxford College of Emory University, and is currently working on a Bachelor of the Arts in English Literature at Armstrong Atlantic State University. She loves reading any book she can get her hands on—but mostly fiction and history. In her spare time Sophia enjoys fiber arts such as weaving and spinning, is currently working on her first quilt, and editing her novel. She is taught with the Deep Workshops at Hubert Middle School. She has been with Deep since Spring 2010.

Maggie Makuch was born and raised in Mohnton, Pennsylvania, an hour outside of Philly. She moved to Savannah to become a student at SCAD, and after graduating with her B.F.A. in Writing, she decided to stay. She lives with her boyfriend and dog, Otis, both of whom are her best friends. She enjoys seeing the kids smile when they know they just wrote something great, when she knows they did something their proud of. She taught for Deep at the Southside YMCA summer camp 2010; Oglethorpe Charter School, Fall 2010; and at Heard Elementary Academy, Spring 2011.  

Rikki Revilla (Deep Intern) spent her first two undergrad years at San Francisco State University studying anthropology and dance. Realizing she would have to go as far as a PhD to get anywhere with that major (and realizing she had terrible balance for dance) she reconsidered her life ambition and joined the army reserves. The only reason she wanted to join was to become a linguist and yet, somehow, spent a year and two months of training only to become a combat medic and physical therapy technician. Although she loved both cultural anthropology and working with patients, the only thing she could see herself do for the rest of her life was write. Now she is completing her degree in English Communications and interning with Deep to share her enthusiasm for writing with the youth of Savannah. She hopes to take all her experiences and write a collection of exaggerated short stories and perhaps (one day) be a dancer in a Disney world parade. She taught at Hubert Middle School, Jacob G. Smith Elementary, and Scott Alternative Learning Center in the spring of 2011.

Jameel Roberts (Deep Intern) taught at Jacob G. Smith Elementary, and the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Coastal Empire—Frank Callen Unit in the spring of 2011.

Shayna Cloud (Deep Intern) taught at DeRenne Middle School Middle School, and West Chatham Middle School in the spring of 2011.

Keone Dixon (Deep Intern) taught at Hubert Middle School in the spring of 2011.

Kellyn Danehey taught with Deep from January-July of 2011. Facts about Kellyn: She hails from the great state of Nebraska, which means she loves red meat and corn; She has healthy obsessions with the Golden Girls, Britney Spears, South Park, and Murder, She Wrote; She moved to Savannah to escape the bitter Mid West cold; She has a pug Elway, and a cat Capote. Capote is very loving, while Elway is an evil mastermind; Kellyn is the youngest child of her family.  This explains many personality traits; She has her undergraduate degree in Criminal Justice from the University of Nebraska and is currently working on her teaching certification; Is recovering from a sunflower seed addiction.  Her favorite brand is not offered in Georgia so she has been known to have a separate suitcase for seeds when she visits Nebraska; Kellyn loves baseball (Yay Red Sox!) and college football (Huskers!).  She can also be very obnoxious while viewing sporting events; Kellyn cannot help her awesomeness, it just comes naturally.

Matthew Harrell was born and raised in Georgia. He is currently working toward a bachelors degree in English at Armstrong Atlantic State University. He enjoys reading and writing, and participated in several creative writing competitions in high school. He now writes for The Inkwell, AASU's campus newspaper. He joined Deep to share this passion with younger generations and to get an idea of what teaching a class will be like in the future. Matthew taught with Deep at Bartlett Middle School in Spring 2011, and Isle of Hope School in Fall 2011.

Elizabeth Winthrop taught at Islands High School in the spring of 2011.

Sean Carleton taught at Southwest Middle School in the spring of 2011.

Abraham Cornelius taught at Hubert Middle School in the spring of 2011.

Mark Geary taught the Comic workshop at Hubert Middle School in the spring of 2011.

Evanee Taylor  was raised in Midland Texas. An English communication major at AASU, Evanee is completing her senior year. She has lived in Savannah for six years now, and enjoys volunteering and working with kids. She has no problem relating to many Deep students, as she loves Twilight and is so totally Team Jacob.

Lasasha Dawson co-taught the Deep workshop at the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Coastal Empire—Frank Callen unit in the Fall of 2011.

Joseph Schwartzburt holds a B.A. in English from Armstrong Atlantic State University (sometimes he holds it above his head like a trophy) and is currently pursuing his M.F.A. in Creative Writing at Wilkes University. He lives, writes, and vacations daily in Savannah, GA where he is working on his first novel. Mingling with other writers and sharing his passion for writing are two of his favorite things, so it was a no-brainer for him to get involved with Seersucker Live. His involvement in the literary arts in Savannah inevitably led him to Deep where he hopes to inspire younger generations to put the pen to the paper. And yes, like Samson, his power lies in his hair. Joseph co-taught the Deep workshop at Southwest Middle School in Fall 2011.

Jessica Eppinger co-taught the Deep workshop at Coastal Middle and Southwest Middle School in Fall 2011.

Dustin Michael co-taught the Deep workshop at Coastal Middle School in Fall 2011.

Claudia Chambers currently teaches Art at Scott Alternative Learning Center. She is originally from Michigan and has a little over 10 years of experience teaching and volunteering with various youth. She graduated from Eastern Michigan University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree with teacher certification. She has a Master of Science Degree in Brain Research through Nova Southeastern University and 2 years teacher education through Waldorf Schools. She is currently pursuing coursework to complete a Doctoral degree in Educational Leadership. Bsides working with Deep, Claudia also volunteers with Girl Scouts at Scott Alternative Learning Center. She co-caught the Deep workshop at Charles Ellis Montessori School in Fall 2011

Chinnetta Buford is a native of Atlanta, Georgia, currently a senior, pursuing a Bachelor’s of Science in Criminal Justice at Savannah State University. Chinnetta prides herself on possessing a natural ability to motivate and help others. Her commitment to service is evident in her extensive campus and community involvement. On campus Chinnetta is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., Sisters Striving for Excellence, Inc., and Estuary, a campus- based group that publishes the work of writers from Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Within the Savannah area, Chinnetta volunteers with the Frank Callen Boys and Girls Club, Inner City Night Shelter, and East Broad Elementary. Upon completion of her undergraduate studies, Chinnetta plans to teach early childhood education, in the greater Atlanta area. Chinnetta believes that an essential part of a happy, healthy life is being of service to others. She co-taught the Deep workshop at Islands High School in Fall 2011.

Jasmine Scott co-taught the Deep workshop at Mercer Middle School in Fall 2011.

De'Monica Banks attends Savannah State University. She is an overexcited senior, majoring in English with a minor in Sociology. Graduation is this December! She has always wanted to be a teacher since the 3rd grade for one sole reason - she wanted to write on the chalk board. Of course, her motives have changed. She seeks to enhance the students' (the future) ability to write, and maybe even get them to love it as she does, for she views writing as a therapeutic form of using words to vent, and project one's emotions however and towards whoever while delivering any message one chooses. She is a young writer and aspiring teacher on the rise, on the move, and still aiming for the stars. Monica is like a sponge when it comes to writing and teaching, ready to soak up all of your specialties as individual writers and teachers! She co-taught the Deep girls workshop at Scott Alternative Learning Center in Fall 2011.

Michael Simmons  is 22 years old and was born in new York. He came down to Savannah, GA in October of 2008. He attended the Savannah College of Art and Design from January 2009 to present as an architecture major, in addition he also attend Savannah State University from may 2010 as a visual arts major, and physics minor. Fall 2011 was his first season with Deep. He joined because he thinks he can help kids achieve what they might think is the unachievable. Also teaching can help Michael get his ideas out more fluidly, and to help him become a better orator. He co-taught the Deep boys workshop at Scott Alternative Learning Center in Fall 2011

Selah Dalacos volunteered with Deep as an office assistant from August 2011–January 2012.