I earned my Master’s degree in English and American Literature, German Literature and Philosophy from the University of Constance, Germany, and my PhD from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. My research interests include twentieth and twenty-first century German literature – women writers in particular, postcolonial studies, and critical whiteness studies. I am currently working on a book-length manuscript Weiße Weiblichkeiten: Afrika, deutschsprachige Schriftstellerinnen und ihre (post-)koloniale Verortung von Geschlecht.

My research interests and my strong belief that it is important to teach German culture as a diverse culture inform my course design. I invite my students to critically reflect on German culture and their own native culture(s) by challenging their belief systems and expanding their abilities to examine a topic critically and from multiple perspectives. I consider my commitment to my students the central drive behind my teaching, and I honor it – and will continue to do so – through a critical reflection of my own teaching practices, and a curiosity towards new course topics.

 Recent Courses

• GER 420:Genre (“Black German History & Writing”)
• GER 408: Advanced Business German
• GER 401Y:Advanced German Writing
• GER 310: Introduction to the Study of German Literature
• GER 302W:Intermediate Writing and Grammar
• GER 301:Intermediate Speaking and Listening
• GER 190:Twentieth-Century German Literature in English Translation (“Narratives of Injustice”)
• GER 3:Intermediate German (World Campus)
• GER 2: Elementary German II(World Campus)
• GER 1: Elementary German I (World Campus)
• PHIL 589:Philosophical Translation Seminar (German)