People | Iowa Youth Writing Project | Magid Center for Writing

Person	Sort Control	Person Display
Mallory Hellman		Mallory Hellman Title/Position Director Email mallory-hellman@uiowa.edu Phone 319-384-1328 Mallory Hellman (she/her) has served as the Director of the Iowa Youth Writing Project since 2015. Prior to that, she received an MFA in fiction from the Iowa Writers' Workshop and a BA in English and American Literature from Harvard. Mallory's nonfiction has appeared in Tuesday Magazine, Forbes, and elsewhere. She has taught creative writing at the University of Iowa, the Duke University Talent Identification Program, and at K-12 schools, community centers, residential rehabilitation facilities, and shelters throughout the Midwest. Mal's favorite part about life with the IYWP is hearing students read their work aloud. In her spare time, she enjoys hiking, cooking, solo (or group!) dance parties, and cooing to the nightshades in her garden. Her favorite word is "robust."
Gwyneth Forsythe		Gwyneth Forsythe Title/Position Associate Director Gwyneth Forsythe graduated from the University of Iowa in 2019 with BAs in Theatre Arts and History, honors in both. In 2020, she worked as a Development Intern at Cartel Pictures (Los Angeles). In the spring of 2021, she completed her MFA in Writing for the Stage and Screen from Northwestern University, where she won the Krevoy Screenwriting Prize for her television pilot, White Dog Rises. While in Chicago, Gwyneth produced several theatre productions, worked as a freelance writer, teaching artist, and adjunct faculty for the City Colleges of Chicago. Recently, she has returned to Iowa City to work with the IYWP and to write and produce more plays.
Christina Montilla		Christina Montilla Christina Montilla (she/her) is a multi-genre writer from Seattle. She holds an MFA in fiction from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, and a BA in Anthropology, Creative Nonfiction, with a minor in Publishing and Printing Arts from Pacific Lutheran University. She is currently an IYWP Rydson Fellow at the University of Iowa. She was previously a Truman Capote Fellow in Fiction and on the First Generation @ Iowa student advisory board. Christina has taught creative writing to all ages but loves to teach and incorporate silliness and playfulness as pedagogical tools for undergraduate writers and for volunteers at IYWP sites. She loves eco fiction, this community, spooky stories, poetic forms, and daydreaming.

Mallory Hellman

Director

Mallory Hellman (she/her) has served as the Director of the Iowa Youth Writing Project since 2015. Prior to that, she received an MFA in fiction from the Iowa Writers' Workshop and a BA in English and American Literature from Harvard. Mallory's nonfiction has appeared in Tuesday Magazine, Forbes, and elsewhere. She has taught creative writing at the University of Iowa, the Duke University Talent Identification Program, and at K-12 schools, community centers, residential rehabilitation facilities, and shelters throughout the Midwest. Mal's favorite part about life with the IYWP is hearing students read their work aloud. In her spare time, she enjoys hiking, cooking, solo (or group!) dance parties, and cooing to the nightshades in her garden. Her favorite word is "robust."

Gwyneth Forsythe

Associate Director

Gwyneth Forsythe graduated from the University of Iowa in 2019 with BAs in Theatre Arts and History, honors in both. In 2020, she worked as a Development Intern at Cartel Pictures (Los Angeles). In the spring of 2021, she completed her MFA in Writing for the Stage and Screen from Northwestern University, where she won the Krevoy Screenwriting Prize for her television pilot, White Dog Rises. While in Chicago, Gwyneth produced several theatre productions, worked as a freelance writer, teaching artist, and adjunct faculty for the City Colleges of Chicago. Recently, she has returned to Iowa City to work with the IYWP and to write and produce more plays.

Christina Montilla

Christina Montilla

Christina Montilla (she/her) is a multi-genre writer from Seattle. She holds an MFA in fiction from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, and a BA in Anthropology, Creative Nonfiction, with a minor in Publishing and Printing Arts from Pacific Lutheran University. She is currently an IYWP Rydson Fellow at the University of Iowa. She was previously a Truman Capote Fellow in Fiction and on the First Generation @ Iowa student advisory board. Christina has taught creative writing to all ages but loves to teach and incorporate silliness and playfulness as pedagogical tools for undergraduate writers and for volunteers at IYWP sites. She loves eco fiction, this community, spooky stories, poetic forms, and daydreaming.