She earned a BA in English and Spanish from Texas Christian University in 1998, then spent two years teaching at Burleson High School in Texas, before moving to Charlottesville, where she earned an MA and a Ph.D. in Spanish Literature from the University of Virginia. Prior to joining the Southern Virginia faculty in 2007, she spent two years as a visiting faculty member at Washington and Lee University. She has previously taught immersion classes at the UVA Summer Language Institute.