Our Team

We are a group of educators committed to creating a culture of dignity in the classroom, establishing trust and rapport, prioritizing comprehension over obedience, and helping students achieve independence in writing. Due to these high standards, our team is intentionally small. We are wholly committed to ensuring every student in our program makes visible progress toward their potential.

Each instructor brings a unique skill set and teaching style to our classrooms. During our consultation process, we learn about your child’s personality and interests to ensure we make the best match.

Sydney Hoff, Founder & Director

Sydney founded Rose Writing Center in 2020 to address a growing demand for rigorous, thoughtfully designed writing education. Today, she leads the Center’s program development, curriculum initiatives, and instructional quality. While she no longer teaches directly, she remains deeply involved in designing Rose Writing Center’s pedagogy and mentoring the instructional team.

Sydney is currently earning a Master of Arts in Humanities with a concentration in Classical Education from the University of Dallas. The program emphasizes the Trivium, Quadrivium, philosophy of classical education, and classical pedagogy, subjects she is intentionally integrating into Rose Writing Center’s curricular vision to deepen students’ engagement with the Great Books and classical techniques.

Her professional background includes tutor training at Emory University’s Writing Center, where she supported hundreds of students in writing-intensive coursework. She is also accredited as an Experienced Instructor with the Institute for Excellence in Writing (IEW) and has taught using CiRCE Institute’s Lost Tools of Writing methodology. Sydney has served on classical education curriculum committees, designing literature-based lesson plans and Socratic questioning strategies.

Originally from Westchester County, New York, she graduated from Emory’s Goizueta Business School with a double major in philosophy and information systems & operations management. In her spare time, Sydney enjoys golf, philosophy, history, memoirs, and travel.

Instructors

  • Ms. Molly Bruening

    After graduating from Illinois State University in 2004, Molly Bruening taught high school students with learning disabilities. She sought a curricula that would help her students thrive and find a love for language, and this.is how she discovered IEW. For the past eleven years, Molly has used IEW’s products to teach in traditional classrooms, homeschool cooperatives, and her own homeschool. She holds a bachelor's degree in special education and is a Registered Instructor with the Institute for Excellence in Writing. Residing in central Illinois with her husband, four children, and their dog, Frodo, Molly can be found curled up with a good book whenever she finds a spare moment.

  • Mrs. Lisa Traylor

    Mrs. Lisa brings a wealth of experience to the RWC team as a homeschool mom of four with over two decades dedicated to teaching children from pre-k to high school. In 2013, she and her husband launched their own co-op, where Lisa served as both a teacher and administrator until her youngest graduated in 2022. During this time, as she witnessed her students grow in confidence and skill, she developed a passion for the Lost Tools of Writing curriculum. Lisa holds a bachelor’s degree in early childhood education with a minor in special education from James Madison University. Residing in Midlothian, Virginia, she enjoys family time, church activities, pickleball, and beach outings.

  • Ms. Deanna Heikkinen

    Deanna has been teaching writing, history, literature, and art history to students in grades 2-12 for over six years. Previously, she was a tenured humanities professor at Los Angeles Valley College, specializing in the Great Books of Western Civilization, world history, Native American history, and anthropology. Deanna's extensive background supports her work at RWC in test prep, academic support, and custom lessons. She holds a doctorate in education, master’s degrees in history and anthropology, and bachelor’s degrees in anthropology and art history. Her archaeological work focused on Ancient Egypt, including excavation and textile analysis, and she is a Registered Instructor with the Institute for Excellence in Writing.

  • Ms. Amy Jacobsen

    Amy has been teaching students of all ages since 2005. She holds a bachelor's degree in education and special education, as well as a master's degree in education with an emphasis in reading from the University of Nebraska at Kearney. She spent seven years teaching K-8 students across various subjects, helping them build confidence and succeed. While homeschooling her own children, she discovered the Institute for Excellence in Writing (IEW) and Lost Tools of Writing (LTW) and quickly saw the benefits of their structured approach. She has taught in both public and private schools and brings experience in online instruction as well. Amy lives in Missouri with her husband, four children, two beagles (Rooby and Smudge), and a cat (Shadow). In her free time, she enjoys reading, gardening, playing games, and spending time outdoors with her family.

  • Mrs. Deborah Carter

    Deb holds a B.A. from Colby College and an M.S.Ed. from the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education. She has over 25 years of experience working with students in grades 6–12, including tutoring writing, teaching ESL through VIPKid, and homeschooling her three children.

    For the past five years, Deb has focused on college application support, guiding students as they craft compelling personal statements and supplemental essays. She was introduced to IEW through a homeschool co-op and quickly saw its potential to transform student writing.

    Deb lives in Charlotte, NC. In her free time, she enjoys reading historical fiction, sewing, and knitting. She is passionate about helping students develop confidence in their writing and express their ideas with clarity.

  • Photo of instructor Lauren Bridgeford wearing a black blouse

    Ms. Lauren Bridgeford

    Lauren is an experienced English educator specializing in ESL and Language Arts for adults and adolescents. She excels in course and curriculum design, valuing the creative and dynamic aspects of classroom instruction. Lauren holds a Bachelor’s degree in Languages, Literature, and Criticism from Hunter College in New York City and has earned CELTA and DELTA Certifications from Cambridge University. After fifteen years in private education, she became a flagship instructor at Rose Writing Center in 2020 and she is now a Certified Instructor with the Institute for Excellence in Writing. Now living in Cincinnati, Ohio, Lauren enjoys live music, NFL football, and championing the merits of a proper grammar education to anyone willing to listen.

  • Mrs. Jamie Buse

    Jamie Buse has spent two decades in education, teaching students of all ages in public, private, online, and homeschool co-op settings. Believing every student can learn with the right tools, she discovered IEW and LTW while homeschooling her three daughters as a way to enhance their communication, writing, and critical thinking skills. Jamie also supports other homeschooling families, helping them make educational decisions that align with their goals. A native Texan, she graduated from Midwestern State University in 2006 with a Bachelor of Applied Arts and Sciences. Jamie enjoys small-town life, spending time with her family, teaching piano, participating in church activities, and reading historical fiction.