Biography
Education
- Ph.D., 2004 Cultural Anthropology, CUNY, The Graduate Center, NY
- M.A., 1993 Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages, Teacher’s College, NY
- B.A., 1987 American Studies, Yale University, New Haven, CT
Courses Taught
- Human Culture and Behavior (Introduction to Cultural Anthropology) (ANTH 152)
- Gender and Culture (ANTH 308)
- Language in Culture (ANTH 310)
- World Cultures and Societies (ANTH 315)
- Peoples of Africa (ANTH 338)
- Urban Anthropology (ANTH 346)
- Ethnographic Research Methods (ANTH 475)
- Interrogating Globalization (ANTH 486)
- Problems in Cultural Anthropology (ANTH 602)
- Research Methods and Design (ANTH 696A)
Selected Publications and Presentations
2018 "Expectations of Public Space: Attachments, Environmental Responsibility, and Urban Sustainability in Dakar, Senegal" In Sustainability in Sub-Saharan Africa: Problems, Perspectives, and Prospects. Jennifer L. De Maio, Suzanne Scheld, and Mintesnot Woldeamanuel, eds. Vi-2 and 165-170. London: Lexington.
2018 Sustainability in Sub-Saharan Africa: Problems, Perspectives, and Prospects, with Jennifer DeMaio and Minte Woldeamanue, eds. Boston, MA: Lexington Books.
2017 "Conservation and the People’s Views: Ethnographic Perspectives from Jones Beach State Park" with Dana Taplin and Setha Low . In Making the Past Less Foreign, Jerry Wells and Barry Steifel, eds. London: Routledge.
2017 "Clothing and Urban Transformation in Dakar, Senegal," In Urban Life, Petra Kuppinger and George Gmelch, eds. Albany, NY: Lexington Books.
2015 "The Negotiation and Development of Writing Teacher Identities in Elementary Education. with Shartriya M. Collier, Ian Barnard, and Jackie Stallcup. Teaching/Writing: The Journal of Writing Teacher Education 4 (2): 90-112.
2014 "The Values-Based Approach for Cultural-Heritage Preservation in U.S. Public Parks," with Dana Taplin. APT Bulletin: Special Issue on Values-Based Preservation. XLV (2-3): 49-56.
2013 "Discourse and Social Relations in the Street Economy of Dakar, Senegal" In Street Economies: Politics and Social Movements in the Global South. eds. Karen Tranberg Hansen, Lynne Milgram, and Walter Little. SAR Press.
2011 "An Anthropological Lens for Teaching Social Studies" In Reclaiming Social Studies in the Elementary Classroom:A Pathway for Integrating Culture and the Arts edited by Joyce Burstein and Gregory D Knotts. Kendal Hart Publisher.
2011 "Racism, 'Free-Trade' and Consumer 'Protection': The Controversy Over Chinese Traders in Dakar, Senegal In Dimensions of International Migration, Paivi Hoikkala and Dorothy Willis, eds. Pp.45-64. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
2010 “The ‘China Challenge’: The Global Dimensions of Activism in the Informal Economy in Dakar, Senegal in Africa’s Informal Workers: Collective Agency, Alliances and Transnational Organizing. Ilda Lindell, ed. London: Zed Books.
2009 “Letter Writing and Learning in Anthropology.” The Journal of Effective Teaching. Volume 9 (3): 59-69.
2007 "Youth Cosmopolitanism: Clothing, the City and Globalization in Dakar, Senegal." City and Society. 19 (2): 232-253
2005 Urban Parks: Lessons on Cultural Diversity with Setha M. Low and Dana Taplin. Texas: Texas University Press.
2003 "The City in a Shoe: Redefining Urban Africa through Sebago Footwear Consumption." City and Society 15 (1): 109-130
Research and Interests
5 keywords that describe your topical areas of specialization: urban, globalization, space & place, fashion, feminism
Geographic areas of specialization: Africa, urban U.S., San Fernando Valley
Current projects: I am currently writing about the politics of public space in Africa and the U.S.