I'm a first year PhD student at UCLA in Medieval Literature. I primarily study female piety and religious experience in the Middle Ages. I also study the intersections between the medieval and film/new media. After my PhD, I plan to become a professor and teach and research litereature at the college level. I'm also interested in the History of the English Language and have studied German, Anglo Saxon and Latin while in graduate school. When I'm not studying, I'm usually watching movies, hiking, shopping, birdwatching or singing at the top of my lungs.

Background

I grew up in Bakersfield, California, a large agricultural city in California's Central Valley. Unlike Kevin, I grew up almost all my life in the same house (which my parents only recently sold), so I know Bakersfield pretty well. I graduated from Foothill High School in 1997 and recieved my degree in Honors English at Scripps Women's College in May of 2001. This spring (2003) I received my MA in English from UC Riverside; I transfered this fall to finish my PhD at UCLA.

Family

My parents currently reside in Bakersfield, California. My mother, Kathy Walker, is currently the Director of Curriculum and Standards at the Bakersfield City School District. My father, Terry Walker, is a 6th grade teacher at Leo B. Hart Elementary School. My sister, Lindsey is a senior majoring in Music Education at Cal State Northridge. She just had her senior recital and it was amazing!! I also have a half-brother, Craig Walker who lives in Louisiana. He and his wife Claire just had a beautiful baby named Connor.