Writing Center Contact Information

Our Staff

For general questions, call us at (909) 274-5325 or email us at: writingcenter@mtsac.edu

Trista Payte
Director
Phone: (909) 274-4559
Email: tpayte@mtsac.edu
Building: 26B-1563B

Dr. Trista Payte (she/her/hers) holds an Ed.D. in Educational Policy and Leadership and an M.A. in English, both from California State University Northridge. Before coming to Mt. SAC, Trista served as the Writing Programs Coordinator at California State University, Northridge where she also taught in the English and Humanities departments for over a decade. Her areas of specialization, passion, and interest include writing center theory and praxis, rhetoric and composition, writing across the curriculum, and anti-racist pedagogy. When she isn’t wearing her academic hat, Trista enjoys spending time with her two children, reading contemporary fiction and graphic novels, and hiking with her partner and her two rescue dogs.
Nicole Blean
Assistant Director
Phone: (909) 274-5616
Email: nblean@mtsac.edu
Building: 26B-1563E

Coming on board as an adjunct faculty in English, Nicole Blean joined the Mt. SAC team in 2006, thus ending a “freeway flyer” situation where she taught up to six classes per semester all over the SoCal map. In 2007, she joined the Writing Center full time and assisted in building the new Center in 2008. Driven by a passion for instruction, she continued teaching at least one class on the side (usually on Saturdays) in addition to her commitment to the Center. Since 2016, Nicole began serving in her current role as Writing Center Assistant Director. She has been an active member of the SoCal Writing Center Association for the past fifteen years and is also involved in the IWCA Mentorship Program. In her free time, she enjoys writing, art journaling, and “pigging out” on books.
Mauricio Goncalves
Tutorial Services Specialist
Phone: (909) 274-5274
Email: mgoncalves@mtsac.edu
Building: 26B-1563D

Mauricio has been teaching ESL and English since 2003. He holds a B.A. in Comparative Literature and an M.S. in TESOL from CSUF. He has taught reading and writing at different colleges and universities including UCI, CSUF, and Cal Poly Pomona. Mauricio has a special interest in Second Language Acquisition and Linguistics. He grew up in Brazil and speaks three languages. He joined Mt. SAC in 2016 as an AMLA instructor, and he is happy to assist students, faculty, and staff at the Mt. SAC Writing Center! In his free time, Mauricio is always searching for a good cup of coffee and a scenic road for a long morning drive.

Joyce Dillon
Writing Center Coach
Phone: (909) 274-5929
Email: jdillon@mtsac.edu
Building: 26B-1563A

Joyce studied English at CSUF where she earned a bachelor’s degree and a teaching credential. She taught British and American literature in high school for nine years. Later she earned her master’s in English with an emphasis in teaching. After taking some time off to start raising her family, Joyce returned to CSUF and spent a year focusing on writing center pedagogy and practice. She started teaching English at Mt. SAC in 2007. Joyce joined the Mt. SAC Writing Center team in 2015 where she focuses on tutor training. She is happy in her work as an adjunct instructor working with colleagues and tutors as they provide support to Mt. SAC students and faculty. When she is not at work, Joyce enjoys reading and discussing novels, working out, and spending time with her husband, young adult sons and their cat, Abby.
Jackie Duran
Writing Center Coach
Phone: (909) 274-5295
Email: jduran47@mtsac.edu
Building: 26B-1563A

Jackie was originally a Mt. SAC student, who later transferred and earned her BA and MA in English from Cal State University, Fullerton. She’s been working with the writing center since 2016 where she started off as a WC tutor, then moved to a TC position, and once she graduated from school, she was able to become a faculty member working in the writing center as well as an adjunct professor here at Mt. SAC. She hopes to continue teaching, and in the future, she may even go for her Ph.D.! During her free time, she enjoys reading and spending time with her dogs (Toni and Frida).
Bianca Lee
Writing Center Coach
Phone: (909) 274-5295
Email: blee@mtsac.edu
Building: 26B-1563A

Bianca has a master’s degree in English with an emphasis in TESOL and Composition Rhetoric from Cal Poly University, Pomona. She taught ESL and English Composition classes for Chaffey College, Citrus College, Mt. San Antonio College, and Riverside City College. She has over twenty – years of teaching experience. As an Hourly Instructor at the Writing Center, she is a drop – off tutor, she is a liaison with the Equity Center, and she assists in the supervision of the Writing Center support staff and tutors. Also, she is a Mountie Mentor and an Adjunct Faculty member for the English Department. Her personal interests are traveling by train and ship, spending time shopping and eating at restaurants with friends, and watching any movie that contains Dwayne Johnson.

Elissa Saucedo
Writing Center Coach
Phone: (909) 274-5295
Email: esaucedo20@mtsac.edu
Building: 26B-1563A

Elissa graduated from CSU Fullerton in 2020 with a BA in English focused in secondary education and a minor in history. She recently graduated from CSU Long Beach in December 2022 with an MA in English with a focus in American Literature and Rhetoric and Composition. Since 2020, she has worked at four different community colleges. She currently works as a writing center tutor and in class tutor for English and ESL courses. Starting Fall semester, she will be joining the English Department at Mt. SAC as an Adjunct professor. When she is not working, she is out hiking, biking, and indoor rock climbing. She also loves spending time with her Maltipoo, Sugar! Sugar helps her spend way too much time binge watching tv and watching scary movies or going out to parks and coffee shops.
Chase Jones
Writing Center Coach
Phone: (909) 274-5295
Email: cjones156@mtsac.edu
Building: 26B-1563A

Chase holds a MA in English from Cal Poly, Pomona. He has been with the writing center as a tutor since 2022 and has worked closely with ACCESS students and the VRC. In the fall of 2023, he became an adjunct professor here at Mt. SAC and a member of the writing center’s support team staff. Chase is interested in creating accessible learning environments for students and educators alike by leveraging principles of universal design for learning and critical pedagogy. When he is not on campus, he spends his free time enjoying TTRPGS, anime, and playing with his dog Iggy.
Sophia O'Brien
Project Expert
Phone: (909) 274-5295
Email: sobrien3@mtsac.edu
Building: 26B-1563A

Sophia is a Mt. SAC, UC Berkeley, and CSUF alum who is currently an adjunct English instructor at Mt. SAC and CSUF. Sophia has been with the Writing Center since 2014 in various roles (from tutor to TC to social media & DLA specialist), and her career path into teaching has been shaped by the wonderful students, staff, and faculty she has worked with over the years. In her free time, she enjoys going on walks and hikes with her dog, Luna, and staying active at the gym and taking Pilates classes. She hopes to continue traveling to new places and work on completing her "National Park bucket list".

Project Expert
Phone: (909) 274-5295
Email: syang75@mtsac.edu
Building: 26B-1563A

Soomin is a Mt. SAC and UCLA alum. She is a returning part-time Project Expert/Data Analyst at the Writing Center. She specializes in project management and data analysis and is responsible for collecting, analyzing, and interpreting data to identify patterns, trends, insights, and solutions. One of her favorite responsibilities as a part-time Data Analyst is to develop databases and reorganize data in a readable format. She is a coffee & tea lover and enjoys trying new cafés in LA, OC, and/or SF area. Also, she loves hanging out with her dog and cat.”