Growing up in a family of Sicilian and Irish immigrants, I loved any opportunity to hear about a family member's background. Throughout my school days, I developed a passion for the study of history and particularly the themes of conflict and identity. As language is closely related to historical studies, I began studying Mandarin Chinese during my senior year of high school. After obtaining a Bachelors degree in History from Bob Jones University, I moved to Northeast China where I lived for three years. For the first two years, I taught Oral English at Jilin University of Finance and Economics and learned a great deal about effective teaching methods and continue to do so. During my third year in China, a Confucius Scholarship allowed me to study Advanced Chinese at Northeast Normal University. Living in China provided daily opportunities to improve my Chinese and learn related culture.

在经历过许多风风雨雨变得ing fluent in Mandarin Chinese, I thoroughly enjoy helping others tackle this challenging but rewarding language. With the exception of Chinese, history is my favorite subject to tutor. I have tutored many in history by using an approach that stresses, "understanding the narrative." My students focus on learning historical narratives, instead of only memorizing dates and terms. Additionally, I have successful experience with taking GRE Verbal. This fall, I plan to study International Relations/Middle East Studies at the graduate level.