Born in Stamford, Connecticut, I ventured south to attend Duke University, and, except for four years in New Orleans, have lived in the Chapel Hill-Durham area ever since. After I graduated from Duke summa cum laude, I then went on to do graduate work in English at Tulane. For thirty-four years I taught high school English and graded more papers and tests during that time than I want to remember. I also have taught adults at Durham Tech and helped with student writing at the Emily K Center in Durham In 1986 I was honored to receive the Educator of the Year award from the Chapel Hill Chamber of Commerce and then, for the school year 1993-94, I was selected the Teacher of the Year from the Chapel Hill-Carrboro System. Over the years I have participated in many valuable summer institutes and seminars that have revitalized me and enriched my teaching. As a result of these experiences, I designed and taught an interdisciplinary course, American Artifacts, that looked at the interconnection between selected pieces of American literature, music, art, and popular culture.
Add something new here In many ways, This OLLI course, THE PEN AND THE PAINTBRUSH, is in an outgrowth and continuation of that course. I very much subscribe to Toni Morrison's idea that good literature is intended to be participatory in that the reader is a crucial part of the literary experience; one of my chief goals and delights as a teacher is to get my students to engage with the texts and with each other.