Stripe Gandara

When Stripe Gandara arrived at Erikson in 2016 after teaching for more than a decade at the University of Nebraska, the ASC had one part-time staff person and nine tutors. Today she is the full-time director with more than 20 tutors ready to support Erikson students with a variety of course assignments at all stages of the writing process. In the past five years, Stripe moved all ASC supports online, and has collected data to assess trends in ASC usage and students’ needs. Before Stripe arrived, students were assigned to the ASC, characterizing the department as strictly remedial in nature. Stripe worked to create an inviting and voluntary program, which has resulted in more students using ASC services. In the 2016-2017 academic year ASC provided 743 hours of service, and by 2020-2021, that figure had risen to 1,336 hours—a nearly 80 percent increase.