I received my B.A., from a small, liberal arts, research and writing intensive program at Vermont College. My areas of concentration were Medical Anthropology and Religious Studies. I completed my Master’s in South Asian Languages and Cultures at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. I am a current Ph.D. Candidate at the University of Florida in the Religion Department.

I have been a Teaching Assistant at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and I have been a Graduate Instructor/T.A., since 2010 at the University of Florida. I have been instructor for courses such as Religions of Asia and an online class, World Religions. I have also been a T.A. for Environmental Ethics, What is the Good Life?, Civilizations of India, Race and Ethnic Identity.

At the University of Florida, I have also been an Instructor in the Writing Program, teaching writing-intensive courses such as Rhetoric and Academic Research, and Argument and Academic Persuasion. In these courses I taught students whose majors ranged from Business and Engineering to Philosophy and History. I have been able to integrate students’ research interests to inspire writing, while simultaneously addressing individual challenges in the academic writing process. I have also been able to integrate analytical/critical thinking exercises and study skills in the classroom.

Institutions such as the University of Florida and the University of Wisconsin have given me the opportunity to teach students from a range of disciplines. As well, I have not only taught traditional age students, but I have also had the privilege of teaching students who have returned to college after serving in the army or working for some years.

My research and fieldwork is situated in India, where I also lecture in the academic and non-academic settings. Whether I am in the forest in rural India or in an urban setting in the U.S.A., the learning process inspires and excites me.

Outside the academic environment I am an avid hiker (have hiked extensively in the North-east U.S.A., in Australia, India, and the U.K.) and enjoy good films and music. I have lived with animals all my life (dogs, cats, horses, cows, and a parrot) and I value the inter-species bonds and forms of communication.

One-seventh of my degree criteria in my undergraduate program required me to demonstrate (to members of the faculty and the student body) how my research would serve the community. That ethic has stayed with me, and I continue to use my research and fieldwork to contribute to environmental issues in local communities in India and the U.S.