From San Diego, California. She holds a Bachelor of Arts (Romance Languages - University of Oregon), a Bachelor of Education (Melbourne University), and a Master of Arts (Linguistics - San Diego State University). Her professional background has centered on Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL) at both school and University, in the US, Australia and Europe. From 1983 to 1990 she was a teacher trainer and seminar speaker for INTER ORBIS, Rappresentanze Editoriali in Milan. From 1998 to 2001 she was a test writer for English language assessment in the Faculty of Public Relations at IULM University in Milan. She has also organized and taught courses of English for Special Purposes (ESP) in multinational companies including Merck, Pechiney and ABB. She currently teaches at IULM University.