Meet our Writing Consultants!

Courtney Gross

Hello there, my name is Courtney. I am from Brandon, South Dakota and I have two siblings and two wonderful parents (Carla and Marky Mark) that reside in the country on an acreage that we call The Shire. I am a sophomore at BH and this is my first year in the Writing Center. If I am not out enjoying one of my main outlets, running, I am probably out climbing, scootering, biking, or doing something outdoorsy.  And along with the outdoorsy activities, I can mostly be found around campus reading a book, knitting, or writing fervently away into my own world. My dream is to become a high school English teacher or maybe a college English professor someday.  I am extremely excited to have the opportunity to help fellow students become more comfortable with their writing!

Lindsay Stephens

I am the author of the definitive rock climbing guidebook to the Needles of Custer State Park. A ski patroller and climbing guide, I also (inexplicably) happen to be a brilliant English major. When I do manage to remove my nose from a book, I can be found crawling around on my beloved Needles granite or tramping around the Hills on skis. I hope to attend a graduate school in the northern latitudes.
 

Scott Gillis

Hey, I’m Scott.  I’m from Toronto, Ontario and 10 years ago this April 1^st (the joke was on me) I arrived in the hills to visit a friend in Beulah, Wyoming.  I had never even heard of the Black Hills before my friend invited me here.  That day I met a girl named Chelle and the rest, as they say, is history.  I am a junior here at BHSU and working towards becoming a high school English teacher.  I am also the proud daddy of two awesome Goldendoodles, Palmer and Breezy, and we love to take long walks and swim in Sand Creek all summer long.  I really like working at the writing center because all of my fellow consultants are cool and we get to meet so many people and discuss so many great ideas.   

Lauryn Weber

Dan Lerwick

Hello! My name is Dan Lerwick. I'm an Art Education major with a minor in Business Marketing. If you can't find me here in the writing center the best place to track me down would either be on the golf course, my slackline, the ski slopes, or if the weather is nice look to the sky, you just might see me working toward gettting my skydiving licence! I grew up here in Spearfish and am loving every year more and more. BH is a great school and has an awesome community of students here on campus! This is my first year working in the writing center, but cannot wait to jump into this as well!
 

Dillon Whisman

While school takes up most of my time, I have found several activities to completely fill my schedule. I have wrestled alligators in Colorado, and I successfully conquered the three legged monster named Stumpy. I picked up knife throwing over the summer to sharpen my mad ninja skills. I chased Sasquatch in a stretch of the Andes Mountains in Peru, but to no avail. More recently I practice civil disobedience, dabble in alchemy, and enjoy long walks on the beach.

Bailey Voss

Hi! My name is Bailey Voss and I’m a senior this year at BHSU. And I will definitely be a “Super-Senior” when I graduate. (Why just be a Senior when you can be a SUPER Senior! Right? Haha.)  I want to apply to Vet school, so I am taking my prerequisites here at Black Hills State. When I’m not busy with school—I love spending time at Tres Crosses ranch taking care of the horses, riding, and scoopin’ poop. Yeah. I just said that. And yeah…I enjoy it. Weird, huh? Haha! ☺ Anyway! This is my second year in the Writing Center. I truly love and am blessed working here because writing has always been a passion of mine and being able to assist others with their writing is very rewarding.
 

Tom Stulken

I am an senior English major with a history minor. I grew up in Lead, South Dakota and have spent all but one of my 28 years in the Northern Black Hills. My primary interests include books, film, and music and over the years I have amassed an almost encyclopedic knowledge of all three. In other words, I am a huge nerd. I plan to attend graduate school after graduating from BHSU, but I am still hammering out the details. This will be my first year as a writing center consultant.

Amy Varland

My name is Amy Varland. I am a native of Lead and love living in the Black Hills. I've had many interesting jobs along the journey that has lead me to BHSU. I've been a castmember at Walt Disney World, managed a travel agency as well as a golf course, worked as a private investigator, I was a member of the production department team at KOTA TV for 5 years, and have been a licensed bail bond agent for the last 6 years. I can be found hiking around the Black Hills with Sapa, my cute little doggie (85 pound lab mix), reading classic novels, drinking coffee, and eating desserts.

Laurie Harris

Hello!  In the fall, I teach composition classes at the basic writing level at BHSU.  My classes work extensively with the Writing Assistance Center and rely on the help of Dr. Huse Wika and the writing consultants.  In the spring, with a lower course load, I am able to work in the Writing Assistance Center in addition to teaching.  I am thrilled to be a faculty assistant to Dr. Huse Wika and work with the consultants guiding my students and many others through all the many and varied writing assignments at the university.  This is a great team.  Writing can be intimidating and we all work to alleviate that stress and help writers succeed.  We work with all levels of writers at all stages of writing! Come find out how we can help!

 Jordan Louks

Hello, my name is Jordan Louks.  I am originally from Casper, Wyoming, but have lived in Spearfish for the past eleven years. I am a junior here at Black Hills State University and it will be my second year working in the Writing Assistance Center.  I am majoring in Political Science with a minor in History. After I obtain my undergraduate degree I am planning on attending law school somewhere.  I like to read, write, hang out with friends, and talk politics.   I also like most sports including baseball, golf, basketball, and soccer.

 Dr. Nicholas Wallerstein

I am a professor of English at BHSU, where I have taught for 15 years. From Concord, Massachusetts, I have also lived (and taught college) in California, Oregon, Montana, and Illinois. I am interested in rhetoric, poetry, religion, and languages, and have studied Greek, Latin, Hebrew, Old English, Middle English, and Modern French. My hobbies include hiking in the Black Hills and traveling through the Rockies.

And Our Writing Center Director!

Dr. Courtney Huse Wika

I am an Assistant Professor of English and the Director of the Writing Assistance Center at Black Hills State. I like to collect things: overheard quotes, books, and sometimes animals. I'm also quite fond of the strange and uncanny, and much of my research focuses on things that scare us (like adolescence).

One of my biggest regrets is not taking advantage of services like the Writing Center when I was an undergraduate; I feel I could have avoided long hours spent staring at blank pages and assignment sheets, and certainly could have avoided the writing angst that plagued me like a kid sister. I hope you'll learn from my mistakes and come visit the Writing Center early and often.

My creative work has appeared in The MacGuffin, Backwards City Review, Scissors and Spackle, Paddlefish, 605 Magazine, and the anthology Life on the Farm and Ranch: South Dakota Stories. I recently published a chapter in the critical anthology Illuminating Torchwood: Essays on Narrative, Character, and Sexuality in the BBC Series, and my latest critical articles on feminist and monster theory in adolescent literature were published in Voice of Youth Advocates.