I was born in a house not too far away (in Pomona), but grew up in West Los Angeles. I'm a first-generation Californian-- my father was from France, and my mother was born in Germany and raised in Colombia. I learned some Spanish as a child, but primarily studied it in school. I also learned French as a child. Unlike many of the children in my neighborhood, I never really mastered Pig Latin. 🙂
Believe it or not, my whole life, I planned to be a veterinarian. I studied Wildlife and Fisheries Biology at UC Davis, and only realized in my third year that veterinary medicine was not the field for me. Around the same time, I discovered and fell in love with literature in Spanish. I graduated with a double major in Biological Sciences and Spanish, and a minor in French. While completing a Master of Arts in Spanish at UC Davis, I was especially inspired by a wonderful professor, and pursued doctoral studies in Medieval Spanish Literature at UC Berkeley.
Since teaching my first Spanish classes as a graduate student at UC Davis, and later at Cal, I knew that I wanted to focus on teaching rather than research. After three years working at other colleges and a magnet high school, in 1999, I was fortunate enough to begin teaching here at wonderful Orange Coast College. 💙🧡 I teach all levels of Spanish, including Honors courses, and enjoy it immensely! In addition, I'm a strong proponent of Study Abroad: I participated in a study/work abroad program in Mexico City during my undergraduate career; and, in summer of 2005, I co-led a program in Madrid, an experience made extra special for me by the presence of my husband and newborn baby girl. From fall of 2006 to spring of 2010, I had the pleasure of coordinating OCC's Honors Program. If you're interested in the program, TALK TO ME! 🙂
During the spring semester of 2013, I was on sabbatical, researching the feasibility and advisability of developing online courses in Spanish. I was amazed at what I learned, especially at a number of interesting and intriguing conferences, such as this one and this one. In my copious free time 😆, I'm working on creating a space where students can enjoy a successful online language experience. During the 2013-2014 academic year, in addition to continuing my sabbatical project, I served as the President of the OCC Academic Senate, which was an especially valuable experience in terms of learning about our college, the District, and the California Community College system from a different perspective. Fall 2014 marked my return to teaching, and I continue to be THRILLED to be back in the classroom!
One of the most fascinating aspects of bi- or multilingualism for me is that different aspects of a person's personality may appear more or less pronounced in one language than in another. I know, for example, that different aspects of my personality are more apparent when I speak in English than when I speak in Spanish or French. The great Italian director Federico Fellini said, "A different language is a different vision of life." Many people are already aware that learning a language presents them with wonderful opportunities to explore different cultures-- or recuperate part of their own-- and discover new attitudes and ideas. What not everyone realizes, however, is that language-learning is also very much a voyage of self-discovery. That, for me, is one of the most beautiful and awesome aspects of learning a language. ❤️
