The Beginning

I received my BA in Communication Sciences and Disorders from Hampton University. I also have a background in acting and hosting and love to travel. Fortunately, I got to spend a semester abroad in France where I acted in two plays, both in French. This reignited the acting bug that I'd always had in me since I was a child. So, I decided to move to Los Angeles after college and take a stab at acting for a bit before I had to return to school for my master's degree.

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Serving Brooklyn

I received my MA in Hearing and Speech Science from the University of Maryland. Afterwards, I worked as an SLP for 10 years in Brooklyn, New York where the majority of my caseload consisted of African American and Hispanic/Latinx children. During this time, I worked in 15 different schools with children from preschool to 21 years of age, working extensively with administrators, teachers, parents, and other professionals in a team-based approach. While living in New York, I hosted the Brooklyn Cable shows Neighborhood Beat: Red Hook and Neighborhood Beat: Prospect Heights. 

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Hello, Doctor

Ever since college, I knew I wanted to get my masters in speech-language pathology, but the doctorate came as a surprise. While working as a speech-language pathologist (SLP) in NY City, I realized that I had too many questions about the kids I was serving. Then I realized that to really fulfill my curiosity, I had to answer those questions myself. So, I went back to school and earned my PhD in Speech and Hearing Sciences from the University of Illinois. 

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Becoming a Tiger

From August 2016 - May 2022, I taught courses on child and adolescent language disorders, communication disorders in society, and clinical problem solving for school-age populations at Auburn University. I conducted research focusing on the classroom/educational and clinical experiences of speakers of nonmainstream dialects of English, with a particular focus on African American English-speaking children and adults. My passion lies in exploring the intersection of culture, language/dialect, communication, and literacy. My work also focuses on the cultural-linguistic competence of professionals and students working with culturally-linguistically diverse populations such as teachers, SLPs, and librarians.

 

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In My Journeys 

I absolutely love to travel. So much so that I’ve been to 20 different countries and territories across 6 different continents. Once I studied abroad in France, I realized just how small the world really is. My love of travel has to do with the experience of meeting new people, eating awesome food, being immersed in a different culture, eating awesome food, hearing and speaking a different language, and probably eating awesome food. I remember one of my dearest friends told me she noticed that I was happiest when out of my own element. I never realized how right she was. As strange as it sounds, I also like being uncomfortable at times (to an extent), because I know it means that I’m growing. This may be one reason why I’ve lived in 6 different states thus far and have moved to many of them without knowing anyone close by.  I plan on packing my bags soon for continent #7 (aka Antarctica).

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Latest Happenings

In May 2022 I left my job at Auburn University as a professor and researcher. In May 2022 , I started working full-time at the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) as its Chief Staff Officer for Multicultural Affairs. So, after 20 years of living away from my hometown of Montgomery County, MD, --I'm back. Not much else has changed though, I still spend much of my time with my family and friends including my husband, my beautiful son, and our rescued boxer/pit bull mix. In my downtime, I enjoy practicing my almost-lost-but-not-forgotten skills of speaking French, playing the piano, and walking on my hands.