She studied Philosophy and Literature at the Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, in Medellín. She also graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Psychology at the Universidad de Antioquia. She received a master’s degree in Spanish from West Virginia University in 1992. She was awarded a Ph.D. in Spanish with a cognitive field in Brazilian Studies in 1997 from the University of Miami. She was a Philosophy Professor at the Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, and a Psychology Professor at the Universidad de Antioquia. She has taught at Denison University in Granville, OH since 1997. At Denison, she has taught Spanish, Portuguese, and Latin American and Caribbean Studies. She is currently the Director of Latin American and Caribbean Studies at that University. She specializes in the cultures and literatures from Colombia, Brazil, and Cuba. She does research and has published about several aspects of these cultures, such as the representation and development of national projects in the 19th century, race and gender relations, feminicide, and migratory groups to Brazil, Cuba and Colombia.
