My love for Spanish began when I was a teenager growing up in Camden, South
Carolina. The gifted high school Spanish teacher, Ruth Keaton, would often come to our
home to play Chess with my older sister. During their games, they always politely closed
the door to make certain that I didn’t intrude. It was then that I made up my mind to enroll
in Miss Keaton’s class and show her that I was also worthy of her attention! She was a
phenomenal teacher whose enthusiasm for the language quickly ignited in me a love for
Spanish that grows stronger each day. I hope to convey this same passion for the language
to my students at USC. When they tell me that they intend to major or minor in Spanish, I
feel that my work has been rewarded.

As an under-graduate, I studied Spanish at Columbia College and El Instituto Tecnológico
in Monterrey, Mexico. I later earned an M.A. in Spanish at Louisiana State University, and
in 1995, I graduated from The College of William and Mary in Virginia with a doctorate in
Higher Education.