Meet the 2026 Staff!
Sofia Tas-Castro: Co-Editor in Chief, CNF Panelist
Sofia is a Senior at the University of Connecticut with a major in English and minors in Literary Translation and Writing. Currently, she is serving as Co-Editor in Chief of The Long River Review as well as a member of the Creative Non-Fiction Panel. Currently, Sofia speaks English, Spanish, and Japanese. She hopes to continue studying language after graduation in a career in publishing or in graduate studies. When she isn’t working, you can find her in the gym or trying new foods with friends.
Ryan Krishna: Co-Editor in Chief, CNF Panelist
Ryan Krishna is a third-year undergraduate student at UConn pursuing a dual degree in English, and an Interdisciplinary Major (IMJR): The Neuroscience of Language. His IMJR integrates coursework in Neuroscience, English, Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences (SLHS), and Psychology. At the Long River Review, Ryan is thrilled to serve as Co-Editor-in-Chief, in addition to being a Creative Nonfiction Panelist. Beyond his classes, Ryan works in an aphasia lab, where he also volunteers in an Aphasia Book Club! After graduation, Ryan hopes to pursue a career in medicine, combining his passion for language and patient care to make a meaningful impact.
Elijah Polance: Managing Editor, CNF Panelist
Elijah Polance is a Junior at the University of Connecticut who is studying English and Journalism. He currently serves as the managing editor for Long River Review, along with leading the business team and reading for the creative nonfiction panel. He also works as a staff writer for the Life Section of The Daily Campus, UConn’s student-run newspaper. When they aren’t reading or writing, they enjoy going on walks, running, and listening to indie folk music.
Tori Groom: Fiction Editor
Tori is a Junior in Political Science and an English major with a minor in German. She is the fiction editor of Long River Review, and this is her second year working for the magazine. She is a research trainee in the political department and a teaching assistant for POLS 1396, Introduction to Research in Political Science. In 2025, she served as a UConn delegate at the UN’s COP30 negotiations in Belém, Brazil. She enjoys running, listening to music, traveling, and trying new foods.
Kiara Korten: Creative Nonfiction Editor,
Interview & Podcasting Editor
Kiara is currently a Junior majoring in English at the University of Connecticut. She leads the interviewing and podcast team for the Long River Review and serves as the editor for creative nonfiction. Additionally, she hosts a weekly radio show on 91.7 WHUS, UConn’s radio station, where she curates playlists based on themes she comes up with throughout the week. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her loved ones, journaling, and exploring the outdoors.
Liam Smith: Poetry Editor, Copyediting
& Design Co-Lead
Liam is a UConn Senior studying English with a concentration in Creative Writing. He serves as Poetry Editor and Design and Copyediting co-lead for Long River Review, alongside his role as an Associate Editor for VOLTA magazine. Liam loves local music shows, buying new sweaters, and starting more new poems.
Hannah Dang: Copyediting & Design Co-Lead, Social Media & Web Team, Poetry Panelist
Hannah (she/her) is a Vietnamese American student at the University of Connecticut majoring in English and minoring in Writing to pursue a career in publishing. Hannah is also a mentor at UConn’s Asian/Asian American Mentoring Program, an undergraduate tutor at UConn’s Writing Center, a contributor of the Mansfield Training School Memorial and Museum, and an intern at Globe Pequot Press. Her performance of her story “Full Load” is published on YouTube by the UConn Humanities Institute. For fun, Hannah loves to binge anime and manga, consume healthy doses of rock and heavy metal music, and snuggle with her pet bunnies.
Temisan Ekperigin: Translations Co-Editor,
Fiction Panelist
Temisan (he/him) is a third year at the University of Connecticut pursuing an individualized major in Diversity in Sports. He is the Translation Co-Editor and a member of the fiction panel for the 2026 issue of the Long River Review. At UConn, Temisan is a manager for the baseball team, a mentor for pre-individualized major students, and an administrative assistant in the Academic Services Center. Temisan is passionate about baseball, analyzing superhero movies, and re-discovering the fashion dolls he owned in his childhood. In his free time, he re-watches his favorite shows and builds lego figures.
Lyhan Maldonado: Translations Co-Editor,
Fiction Panelist
Lyhan is a Sophomore UConn student currently studying French and Translation. He is a Translation Co-Editor and a member of the Fiction panel. While free, Lyhan spends his time studying languages, listening to varied styles of music, reading literature, and indulging in sports.
Samantha Hass: Co-Arts Liaison, CNF Panelist,
Arts & Design Team
Samantha Hass (she/her) is a Senior English major and Studio Art minor at the University of Connecticut. She is excited to be returning to the Long River Review as part of the Arts and Design Team as well as the Creative Nonfiction Panel. In addition to being on the production team for the Long River Review, Sam serves as the Artist Editor for UConn’s student-run newspaper, The Daily Campus. She also interns at the Connecticut Museum of Culture and History. In the future, she hopes to publish her own graphic novels.
Margaret Devlin: Co-Arts Liaison, CNF Panelist,
Arts & Design Team
Margaret is a Junior at UConn studying Studio Arts and English. Along with her role as a creative nonfiction panelist for the Long River Review, she works as part of the Arts and Design Team. After graduation, Margaret plans to pursue a career in art education where she hopes to inspire students to wholeheartedly express themselves. Margaret loves trees, painting, and bagels.
Aram Adler-Smith: Poetry Panelist, Arts & Design Team
Aram Adler-Smith is a first-year student studying both English and Fine Arts. He is currently a member of the Long River Review Poetry Panel and Art/Design Team. Additionally, Aram is thrilled to be the designer of the magazine’s new/current logo! Outside of the Long River Review, Aram works as an assistant archivist at UConn’s Archives & Special Collections, writes and creates consistently, limitlessly rewatches Lars Von Trier films, and conducts research in the fields of disability studies and English. He is truly overjoyed to be working on the Long River Review production team this spring!
Erika Echegoyen: Fiction Panelist, Arts & Design Team
Erika Echegoyen is a Junior with an interdisciplinary individualized major (IMJR: Visual Storytelling) with both a Studio Art minor and an English minor. She is a fiction panelist and a member of the art team. She is currently interning with the Connecticut Writing Project, and is excited to gain academic experience in stop-motion animation and darkroom photography this semester. In her free time, she enjoys drawing, knitting/crocheting, and watching movies/TV shows.
Zoe Yoo: Social Media & Web Editor, Fiction Panelist, Business Team
Zoe (she/her) is a second-year English major and Human Rights minor at the University of Connecticut. This is her second year working for the Long River Review where she serves as the Social Media and Website Editor, fiction panelist, and business team member. Zoe’s mission in life is to “be the voice for the voiceless,” and she wants to tell important stories through writing and film. In her free time, she runs @dousytiva, a creative video editing brand, and loves consuming media, obsessing over fictional characters, and her five dogs.
Noa Climor: Poetry Panelist, Social Media & Web Team
Noa Climor is a Junior at the University of Connecticut, where she studies Journalism and English with a concentration in creative writing. She currently serves as a poetry panelist and a member of the social media/web team for the Long River Review. Additionally, Noa serves as the social media editor for VOLTA, a literary magazine, and for The Daily Campus, UConn’s independent student newspaper. When she’s not writing, editing, or curating social media feeds, she can be found brewing coffee, reading, and watching Merlin.
Chengli Payton: Poetry Panelist, Social Media & Web Team
Chengli Payton is a first-year Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences major at UConn, where she blends her interests in child development and language with the arts. She is a poetry panelist and a member of the social media/web team for the Long River Review. You can find Chengli reading and writing, engaging in philanthropy as a member of the UConn Rho chapter of Delta Phi Lambda Sorority, Inc., or playing the clarinet and piano.
Kaitlin Anderson: Blog Co-Editor, Poetry Panelist
Kaitlin (she/her) is a second-year UConn student majoring in English and minoring in History. She serves as a poetry panelist and a blog co-editor for the Long River Review. In her free time, she enjoys reading fantasy, writing fantasy, listening to Ghibli soundtracks, and re-watching The Lord of the Rings.
Jenna Ulizio: Blog Co-Editor, Fiction Panelist,
Interview & Podcasting Team
Jenna is a Senior English and History dual degree student with a minor in Digital Public History. They are excited to serve on the Fiction Panel as well as the Blog Co-Editor and on the Podcast Team. Outside of the Long River Review, they work at the Writing Center and the Digital Photography Lab. They have published short stories, audio fiction, and poetry, and they plan on pursuing a career in Library Science. In their free time, they take care of a growing number of plants, frequently daydream, and haunt their local library.
Nabeeha Nafey: Poetry Panelist,
Interview & Podcasting Team
Nabeeha Nafey is a freshman in the Honors Program at the University of Connecticut, hoping to construct a potential major in Global Public Health on a pre-med track (though plans are always subject to change!). She also intends on minoring in English. On the Long River Review, she serves as a member of the Poetry Panel, as well as the Interview/Podcasting Committee. Outside of class, you can find her listening to Harry Styles, pretending to be an amateur dermatologist, or digging into pop culture lore!
Edwige Edouard: CNF Panelist,
Interview & Podcasting Team
Edwige (He/Him) is a Black American student as the University of Connecticut majoring in an Individualized Major that focuses both on Creative Writing & Cinematic Studies. Outside of Long River Review, Edwige works with the Department of Fine Arts on theatre shows around UConn’s campus since his freshman year. If not story writing, Edwige usually watches professional wrestling and loves to use music and mind maps to plan the future of where his 6-year writing project can go.
Aiden Srb: Fiction Panelist,
Fundraising & Outreach Team
Aidan Srb is a Senior at the University of Connecticut majoring in English with minors in Writing and Communication. He is currently serving as a fiction panelist and a member of the outreach & fundraising team for the Long River Review. He is also a writing intern for the Connecticut Writing Project. In his free time, Aidan enjoys playing basketball and watching movies.
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