APPOINTMENTS

Hodder Fellow 2005-2006 at Princeton University
Spent academic year as writer-in-residence at Princeton University's Council of Humanities/Department of Creative Writing.

Board Member of the National Coalition Against Censorship

Senior Fellow at The World Policy Institute
Member of progressive think tank dedicated to policy research and advocacy on critical world problems.

BOOKS

Mexican Enough: My Life Between the Borderlines
Author, Atria/Simon & Schuster 2008

100 Places Every Woman Should Go
Author, Travelers' Tales 2007

Around the Bloc: My Life in Moscow, Beijing, and Havana
Author, Villard/Random House 2004

JOURNALISM EXPERIENCE

The Odyssey: US Trek
8/00-5/01
National Correspondent, http://www.ustrek.org
One of 10 Americans selected from application pool of 500 to travel 45,000 miles across the United States and document its history for The Odyssey, a non-profit Web site with audience of 100,000 K-12 graders. Interviewed key historical experts; shot documentary footage; filed 50 dispatches; presented at dozens of schools.

The Associated Press
Austin, TX, 12/98-6/99
Political Reporter
Covered 1999 Texas Legislative Session. Published 150 stories.

1997 Henry Luce Scholar
Beijing, China, 9/97-7/98
Journalism Instructor and Editor, China Daily
One of 18 young American professionals selected by Henry Luce Foundation to work in Asia for one year. Led staff of 11 Chinese reporters in publication of weekly newsmagazine; held series of newswriting workshops and lectures; conducted extensive research and interviews for memoir.

The New York Times
New York, NY, 5/97-8/97
Scotty Reston Fellow
Published articles in Culture, Sunday Living Arts, and City Weekly sections.

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Moscow, Russia, 6/96-7/96
Freelance Journalist
Covered Russia's 1996 presidential election and its aftermath. Facilitated Russia's first on-line chat between readers of the P-I and the Post-Soviet National Press Institute.

The Washington Post
Washington, D.C., 5/95-8/95
Summer Intern
Published articles in Style section.

Latina Magazine, USA Weekend, Bitch, World Pulse Magazine
1/99-present
Freelance Writer
Published travel stories, memoir pieces, and interviews with political figures.

TEACHING EXPERIENCE

Media Bistro
New York, NY; Washington, DC; San Francisco, CA 8/06-present
Instructor of three-hour memoir writing classes.

Gotham Writer's Workshop
New York, NY, 6/04-present
Instructor of ten-week memoir writing classes and day-long workshops.

Gemini Ink
San Antonio, TX, 2007-present
Instructor of day-long memoir writing workshops.

Whidbey Island Writers Conference
Whidbey Island, WA 2/08
Instructor of travel writing and memoir writing classes.

Southwest Literary Conference
Santa Fe, NM, 6/07
Instructor of week-long memoir writing class.

NON-PROFIT EXPERIENCE

Youth Free Expression Network
New York, NY 5/02 - 6/05
Co-founder & Director
Founded and directed anti-censorship coalition of youth and adults, as part of National Coalition Against Censorship. Organized national "Free Speech and Democracy Film Contest" for young filmmakers; moderated youth panels at conferences including National PTA Convention; conducted censorship workshops at schools and youth media programs; created and edited youth-run Op-Ed service; wrote grants.

The Free Expression Policy Project
New York, NY 1/02 - 12/03
Communications Director
Spokeswoman for think tank on artistic and intellectual freedom. Organized national colloquium on youth and censorship; edited, designed, publicized, and distributed four public policy reports; handled press calls and media affairs; wrote commentaries and reviews for Web site; presented at national conferences.

Nong Jia Niu: Rural Women Knowing All
Beijing, China, 10/97-5/98
Volunteer Editor
Researcher and translator for China's only NGO for rural women. Wrote grants; edited the center's English language reports and publications; organized seminars for migrant workers and village women doctors.

EDUCATION

The University of Texas at Austin
B.J. Magazine Journalism; B.A. Post-Soviet and East European Studies; May 1997.
GPA: 3.98/4.0. Honors: Golden Key, Mortar Board, Phi Beta Kappa.

Moscow Linguistics Institute, Russia
Certificate of Advanced Russian; May 1996.

HONORS

2008 Winner of "Best Travel Book" category of International Latino Book Awards
2008 Fellowship to Can Serrat in Barcelona, Spain
2008 Fellowship to Blue Mountain Center in New York
2007 Winner of the Richard J. Margolis Award for Social Justice
2007 Winner of Gold Prize in "Best Travel Book" category of the Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Competition
2007 Residency at Writers' Colony at Dairy Hollow, Arkansas
2007 Residency at Kimmel Harding Nelson Center for the Arts, Nebraska
2007 Book of the Year, Austin Mayor's Book Club, Austin, Texas
2007 Finalist for Lower Manhattan Cultural Council Residency
2006 Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation Scholarship, Art Omi International in Ghent, NY
2004 Best Travel Book of the Year, National Association of Travel Journalists of America
2003 Writer-in-Resident and Scholarship Recipient, Ragdale Foundation
2002 Honorable Mention, El Andar's Prize for Literary Excellence II
1996 USA Today All Academic First Team
National Association of Hispanic Journalists Scholarship
Freedom Forum Journalism Scholarship
Network of Hispanic Communicators Award and Scholarship
Scripps-Howard Journalism Scholarship
Headliners Foundation Journalism Scholarship
Pan-American Golf Writer's Association Scholarship and Fellowship
National Hispanic Scholarship Fund Award

SKILLS

Languages: proficient in Spanish and Russian; conversational Mandarin Chinese
Computers: Quark, Pagemaker, Filemaker Pro, Photoshop, Lexis/Nexis, Word