She began her teaching career in teaching English at a girls middle school in Hong Kong where she went as a Chinese American to study Cantonese and learn about her cultural roots over thirty years ago. Over the years has taught English as a Second language in adult school, high school, community college, university intensive English programs, and teacher education programs in California, Ohio, New York, and the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. She has also taught ESL/Bilingual classes for community organizations, churches and trade unions. Before coming to George Mason, Shelley was an assistant professor at the University of Maryland, College Park and an associate professor in the Foreign/Second Language Education with a Specialization in Language, Literacy and Culture at the Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio.