I received my Ph.D. in cultural anthropology from Cornell University in 1992. Since that time, I held various research and teaching positions at a variety of local institutions and abroad. From 2001-2006, I taught full time in the Ithaca College Department of Anthropology, offering a variety of courses that reflected my interest in European societies and cultures, ethnic and national identity, linguistic anthropology, ethnography of speaking, ethnography of everyday life, cultural analysis and theory of culture, and myth, ritual, and symbol.  I also began to explore research and teaching in Japan; I made a six-week research trip to Tokyo and Kyoto in 2004, and developed a course on Japanese Society and Culture that I taught for two semesters.

Beginning in 2006, I embarked on a new career in academic administration; you can find me in the School of Humanities and Sciences where I serve as the Associate Dean. My current portfolio includes responsibility for curriculum, course scheduling, experiential learning, and internal grants programs including the Educational Grants Initiative and the Emerson Humanities Collaboration Award.