Faculty nominates Kimberly Smith, Jessica Hooper and Scott Sandler for their work on the upcoming National Writer’s Conference. Kimberly lobbied to have Gavilan host this prestigious conference, which draws several hundred faculty and writing center staff from all over the country, from both four year and two year institutions.  Representatives of all the local UCs and CSUs will be present, as well as private universities like Stanford and Santa Clara. Since securing Gavilan’s position as host, Kimberly and Jessica (among others) have worked non-stop to coordinate the staging of the conference – publicity, recruitment of keynote speakers and presenters, registration, signage, security, room and equipment arrangements, refreshments, and on, and on. In addition to this, both Kimberly and Jessica continue to serve students in their usual capacity: Kimberly juggling her teaching duties with her coordinatorship of the Writing Center, training her staff of Writing Assistants to work in classrooms, labs and with drop in students from all disciplines – and Jessica, whose work with the Basic Skills Committee, with First Year Experience and Learning Communities has inspired faculty and students alike. Their commitment extends beyond the classroom, beyond the English Department, to the heart of our mission of serving the students and community. We are fortunate to have these phenomenal teachers at Gavilan.