Welcome and please read through my short biography. All of the underlined text in blue is hyperlinks so you can take a virtual tour of where I have been and what I have done.

I was born and raised in the suburbs of Philadelphia in Levittown, Pennsylvania.

I have traveled within Central and North America, Europe and Asia and find myself to be lucky to have good friends in all corners of the world. 

I started my undergrad at Bucks County Community College and completed my bachelor degree in international studies at The City College of the City University of New York. At City College I studied international relations with a focus in communication, culture and foreign languages. I have studied French, German, Spanish and Japanese.

In order to further my Japanese language ability and complete research for my undergraduate thesis I studied abroad at Temple University Japan Azabu Juban Campus. For that undertaking I was awarded The Freeman Award for Study in Asia, The Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship and The Winston Fellowship for Study Abroad to completely finance my educational costs. While living in Japan I traveled to Korea and throughout the islands of Indonesia.

Shortly after returning from Japan I was selected to read for a master’s degree in Modern Japanese Studies at The Nissan Institute of Modern Japanese Studies on the campus of St. Antony’s College, Oxford University.  While living in the UK I completed an intensive course in Japanese language and a graduate studies course in modern Japanese history and culture. You can read my dissertation, Conflicting Attitudes Towards Military Comfort Women in Public Debate in Contemporary Japan, here. 

Conflicting Attitudes Thesis.pdf

After completing my studies I worked for the US Government Department of Commerce before relocating to Tokyo, Japan five years ago where I took a position at an international elementary school.  I have been teaching children and adults of varying levels since that time and I find fulfillment in helping others to achieve their educational goals.

I consider learning to be a life-long endeavor and have returned to the States as a New York City Teaching Fellow. As a part of the program I am currently completing a second masters in TESOL at Hunter College City University of New York.