Reading & Writing Center
Reading and Writing Center (RAW)
Spring 2026: Open February 9th to May 29th
Paper Drop-Off Service available during finals week!
ABOUT THE RAW CENTER
All RAW Tutors are Las Positas College professors, and we provide LPC students with reading and writing help for ANY class! We can also help with personal statements for scholarships and essays for college applications.
In the RAW Center, we offer three primary services: 1) supportive, in-person drop-in tutoring; 2) online Zoom drop-in tutoring; 3) and a paper drop-off service with a 48-hour turnaround. No appointment is necessary for any of our services.
Essay and Paragraph Writing
Reports and Scientific Papers
Grammar, Mechanics, and Spelling
Research and Documentation
Revising without the help of AI
College Application Essays/Personal Statements
Career Writing
ESL Support
Reading and Writing Support for ANY Class!
WHAT WE BELIEVE IN THE RAW CENTER
OUR PHILOSOPHY
The Las Positas College Reading and Writing Center (RAW) is an inclusive learning environment where students can receive individualized tutoring in reading, writing, language, and career writing. The RAW Center is open to all LPC students regardless of race, color, national origin, sex, or disability status.
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY & AI
The RAW Center is not an AI detection service, and we uphold LPC's statements on Academic Integrity. Students are responsible for being aware of and following their own instructors' policies regarding the use of AI writing tools. We believe that effective, meaningful, authentic writing comes from human thought and the expression of your unique voice. Your ideas, experiences, and genuine positionality will always yield richer and more valuable writing than artificial intelligence ever could.
LINGUISTIC JUSTICE
We believe that powerful and original writing comes from authentic and diverse voices. We strive to help all students communicate clearly and effectively in their own voices.
MEET THE TUTORS
Our faculty tutors are highly qualified to help you with any reading or writing needs! All of our faculty tutors hold advanced degrees in subject areas like English, Comparative Literature, French, TESOL, Creative Writing, Humanities, History, and more! Several of our tutors have been teaching at Las Positas College for years, and many also teach at other institutions. Our tutors are passionate about reading and writing—but more importantly, they are committed to helping you do your best in your classes. ANY class! We can also help with personal statements for scholarships and essays for college applications. Find out when each of our tutors works by checking the calendar below.
Prof Steve Budd, English/Creative Writing
Steve has been teaching college writing classes for over 15 years and has also worked as a writer, editor, and actor. Steve has an MA from Boston University, and his non-academic interests include acting, writing, hiking, biking, theater, and film. The book he loves to teach most is Tim O'Brien's The Things They Carried.
Prof Steve Chiolis, English/Humanities
Steve has been teaching college writing and humanities at Las Positas College for many years. He brings a wealth of experience in helping students navigate complex literary themes and find their unique writing voice in their essays.
Prof Valerie Connors, English
Valerie earned her BA in English from UC Davis and her MA in American Cultural Studies at The George Washington University. Her English professor career began in 2004, and prior to teaching, she was a legislative aide on Capitol Hill for Congressman Bob Matsui and a researcher at The Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History. She continues to have strong connections to Washington, DC, so she frequently flies to the nation's capitol.
Favorite Quotation: When she seeks inspiration and clarification about her life journey, she connects back to the words of Gloria Anzaldua, author of The Borderlands, because she shares a similar self-analysis: "I am mad—but I choose this madness."
Prof Erin DeBakcsy, ESL
Erin loves music, language, the language of music, and the music of language. She has a BA and MA in German literature from UC Berkeley and an MA in English (TESOL) from Cal State East Bay. She taught German courses at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music for many years, and she is delighted to have joined the LPC ESL team in 2015. When she is not teaching ESL classes, tutoring the awesome RAW Center students, or reading and re-reading the fantastic musings on linguistics by John McWhorter, you can find Erin happily playing violin in Oakland's Prometheus Symphony Orchestra.
Prof Amanda Heinrichs, English
Amanda studied English and history as an undergraduate and has a master's degree in English literature. She has taught at LPC since 2014 and also teaches at CSU Stanislaus. It was as an undergrad student at CSUS that she discovered her passion for tutoring and working with college students. Outside of school, she enjoys reading and learning about holistic health and nutrition.
Favorite Quotation: "Here was peace. She pulled in her horizon like a great fish-net. Pulled it from around the waist of the world and draped it over her shoulder. So much of her life in its meshes. She called in her soul to come and see." —Zora Neale Hurston, Their Eyes Were Watching God
Prof Savanna Alliband-McGrew, French
Savanna grew up in the Midwest and traveled the world with her family at a young age. From this she learned a love of travel, appreciating new cultures, and making new contacts. She studied at the University of Iowa, earning a bachelor's and master's degree in French literature. Savanna enjoys social partner dancing, gourmet cooking, painting with watercolors, and camping. She has been teaching at Las Positas College since 2004.
Favorite Quotation: "In the depth of winter, I finally learned that within me lay an invincible summer." —Albert Camus
Prof Heidii McMichael, English
Heidii earned her BA in English and her Single Subject English teaching credential at CSU Fresno. She received her MA in Comparative Literature from UC Irvine and has taught both high school and college in Fresno, Clovis, and Livermore for over 30 years. She's been at LPC since 2006 and is an avid reader, writer, and home wanna-be-chef. She enjoys spending time with her husband, an engineer, and three grown daughters, two of whom are college students themselves. One of her favorite things to help RAW Center students with is the college application essay.
Favorite Books: Top 5 (currently): East of Eden by Steinbeck, Middlesex by Eugenides, I Who Have Never Known Men by Harpman, Demon Copperhead by Kingsolver, and Jane Eyre by Bronte
Prof Amy Moellering, English
Amy obtained her degrees from the State University system of New York. Her teaching experiences began in Germany, teaching soldiers English through the University of Maryland, and have included stints in Savannah, Georgia and West Point, New York. During a 15-year break in teaching, she worked as an editor, journalist, columnist, and team writer in Corporate Communications. She has been at LPC for many years, and if she's not grading essays, she's reading, hiking, traveling, or skiing.
Favorite Book: One of her absolute favorite novels is One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Prof David Paonessa, English
David received his AA in Liberal Studies from Chabot College and his BA in Theater Arts and his MA in English from CSU East Bay. His interests include singing and hiking, and he's currently working on writing a spy novel. His classes explore themes like family, community, and compassion.
Prof Peter Zimmer, English
Peter really enjoys teaching English C1000 and likes to have students explore themes that involve looking at what makes characters more human. He loves to teach Glengarry Glen Ross by David Mamet and Pedagogy of the Oppressed by Paulo Friere. In his free time, Peter loves all things Disney and Disneyland. He enjoys movies with friends, film, baseball, football, discovering new hiking trails in the San Francisco Bay Area, journalism, listening to podcasts, and traveling.
ONLINE RAW RESOURCES
If the RAW Center isn't open at a time when you find yourself needing help, you can always check out our online reading and writing resources. At our website, you'll find so many different tutorials that will help you strengthen your writing skills and broaden your knowledge on how to write college-level essays.
IN-PERSON DROP-IN TUTORING
- During Fall and Spring semesters, in-person drop-in tutoring is located in Room 21215E, which is inside the Tutoring Center on the 2nd floor of Building 2100. If you can't find us, just ask at the front desk in the Tutoring Center.
- There are no in-person RAW hours during summer semester.
- In-person and online tutoring sessions are 20 minutes and first-come, first-serve. When you arrive, scan the QR code located on the window of the RAW Center.
SPRING 2026 IN-PERSON TUTORING HOURS
Mondays, 12:00 to 4:00 pm
Tuesdays, 12:00 to 4:00 pm
Wednesdays, 12:00 to 2:00 pm
Thursdays, 1:00 to 3:00 pm
In-Person tutoring is unavailable on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays
Closed on holidays and FLEX Day
ZOOM DROP-IN TUTORING
For online tutoring, find us from any Canvas course on the left-hand-side navigation:
"LPC Tutoring/RAW." Our online tutors can work with you in-person but remotely and
offer you help on any assignment.
HOW TO ACCESS ZOOM TUTORING
- Create a free online account with Penji using your Zonemail (required).
- Here is information on how to find and access your Zonemail email address.
- Please watch our videos on how to drop-in for Zoom tutoring.
- Tutoring is powered by the Penji app account. Once your account is created, you can also download the phone app (not required).
Questions? Please email: abummer@laspositascollege.edu.
SPRING 2026 ZOOM TUTORING HOURS
Tuesdays, 4:00 to 5:00 pm
Wednesdays, 4:00 to 5:00 pm
Fridays, 11:00 am to 1:00 pm
Saturdays, 11:00 am to 12:00 pm
Sundays, 6:00 to 7:00 pm
Zoom tutoring is unavailable on Mondays and Thursdays
Closed on holidays and FLEX Day
PAPER DROP-OFF SERVICE
For paper drop-off services, find us from any Canvas course on the left-hand-side
navigation: "LPC Tutoring/RAW." The standard turn-around time on a paper you drop
off to the RAW Center is 48 hours.
HOW TO USE THE PAPER DROP-OFF SERVICE
- Create a free online account with Penji using your Zonemail (required).
- Here is information on how to find and access your Zonemail email address.
- Please watch our videos on how use our paper drop-off service.
- Sending us your paper as a Google Doc will speed the process up on our end.
- Tutoring is powered by the Penji app account. Once your account is created, you can also download the phone app (not required).
Questions? Please email: abummer@laspositascollege.edu.