I received my B.A. in French with a concentration in Education and a minor in Dance from Muhlenberg College in Pennsylvania. I immediately attended graduate school with Middlebury College in Paris and received my M.A. in French in 2000. I was also the recipient of a Youth and Sport Grant from the French government in 2002, which allowed me to spend two weeks in Auvergne, France. Always a student, I went back to school to study Spanish, first at the Language Immersion Institute on the SUNY-New Paltz campus, then at SUNY-New Paltz itself. My husband's parents lived in Argentina for many years, and they are delighted that I can speak to them in Spanish;  we also have many friends from countries in South and Central America.  Always a student, I am lucky to have real-world, ongoing ways to continue to practice and refine my languages.  As a Dance minor, I love dance, and enjoy bringing music and culture to my lessons as well.

My husband and I love to travel, and have been to many places in the U.S. and Europe. My favorite places are Glacier National Park, Montana; Sevilla, Spain; and Paris.

Outside of school, I like to read and take photographs, and exercise with friends;  I became a Zumba(R) instructor in 2013.  I enjoy skiing and going to the beach with my husband and our daughters, who were born in 2009 and 2011.

 

 

Learning another language - Spanish, French, or any other - opens doors to so many opportunities: work experiences in other countries, friends of different backgrounds, and a deeper appreciation for other cultures as well as one's own. Language class is more than just learning to communicate; it is also learning to problem-solve, to empathize, to create connections with another individual. It is my hope that my students will continue to pursue a language, either Spanish or another of their choice.