Lectures & Talks
Highlights from the International Media, Culture, and Politics Symposium at Jagiellonian University. Krakow, Poland. 26 May 2025.
As a professor of English specializing in youth literature, media, and cultural studies, I am passionate about creating engaging, inclusive, and critically informed learning experiences. Whether in my own classroom or as a guest lecturer, I bring energy, expertise, and real-world connections to topics like children’s literature, popular culture, Barbie studies, and Latinx representation. I love collaborating with educators and students across disciplines to spark meaningful conversations and inspire new ways of thinking.
I have been invited to speak at universities, museums, academic conferences, and public venues across the U.S. and internationally. My talks engage audiences of all ages, from university classrooms to K–12 schools, from children to the young at heart, and cover topics such as gender, childhood, media, and popular culture—often through the lens of Barbie and other cultural icons. I’ve also served as a guest lecturer for a range of college courses, including those in gender studies, children’s literature, media studies, and Latin American studies.
I offer talks, lectures, and workshops in both English and Spanish.
Upcoming lectures & talks
Más allá de la muñeca: Barbie, cultura y representación
Universidad de Alicante. Alicante, Spain. 12 December 2025.
Recent lectures & talks
“Barbie en Puerto Rico: de la muñeca a la memoria (post)colonial”
For Teorías de Género y Sexualidad (Graduate Course: ESCH 6006). Dr. Jocelyn Géliga. Maestría en Estudios Culturales y Humanísticos del Departamento de Humanidades. University of Puerto Rico. Mayagüez, PR. 21 August 2025.
Profs & Pints
July 13, 2025 at Crooked Run Fermentation in Sterling, VA
Profs & Pints
July 14, 2025 at Penn Social in Washington, DC
Selected Past Guest Lectures
Researching Barbie: Topics and Methods. Research Methods for English Studies Seminar, with an emphasis on Feminist and Trauma-Informed Methods (Undergraduate Course: ENG 202). Dr. Megan Schoettler. West Chester University of Pennsylvania. West Chester, PA. 11 April 2025.
Fashioning a Self: Discussions of Body and Feminine Identities with Barbie. Introduction to Critical Theory Senior Seminar. Dr. Colbert Root. The Agnes Irwin School. Rosemont, PA. 13 November 2023.
“She just didn’t look like me!”: Young Girls and Women Transform Barbie. The Penn State Humanities Institute. Collaborative Colloquia Collecting Radical Girls: Activist Curation. Penn State University. State College, PA. 6 May 2022.
From Candidacy to Book: A Former Candidate’s Academic Trajectory. Curriculum and Instruction Graduate Colloquium (Graduate Course: CI 590). Dr. Jacqueline Reid-Walsh. Penn State University. University Park, PA (via Zoom). 25 October 2022.
Latinx and Puerto Rican Children’s Literature. Academia de Educación Bilingüe (Continued Education Course: EDUC 6516). Dr. Zaira Arvelo. University of Puerto Rico. Río Piedras, PR. (via Zoom). 22 March 2021.
Using Zines to Assess Writing. Writing Assessment (Graduate Course: PWP 511). Dr. Jolene Borgese. West Chester University of Pennsylvania. West Chester, PA. 12 December 2019.
Selected Past Talks
“Barbie Unboxed: On a Plastic Icon and Her Cultural Legacy” and “Reimagining Barbie Workshop: A Hands-On Creative Deconstruction.”
Barbie Day. Part of the programming for the exhibit “Out of the Box: A Barbie Doll Retrospective.” Barry Art Museum at Old Dominion University. Norfolk, VA. 21 June 2025.
From Doll to Deity: The Digital Reimagining of Barbie in Religious Discourse.
International Media, Culture, and Politics Symposium. Organized by Dr. Rebecca Hains for the Media, Culture, and Politics of Poland and Czech Republic program from Salem State University. Jagiellonian University. Krakow, Poland. 26 May 2025.
Profs & Pints Philadelphia
Profs & Pints Baltimore
Talk & Action: A Conversation Between Faculty & Students of Color.
Panelists: Dr. Daris McInnis (Literacy), Dr. Emily Aguiló-Pérez (English), Dr. Cherise Pollard (English), and students. CARHU Faculty Associate for Equity Action, Dr. Bayo Oluwayomi. West Chester University. 21 October 2024.
Storying Barbie, Girlhood, and Colonialism in Puerto Rico.
The Slattery Center for the Ignatian Humanities. University of Scranton. Scranton, PA. 2 October 2024.
Storying Barbie, Girlhood, and Colonialism in Puerto Rico. Mujeres Sin Fronteras: Author Talk.
Sponsored by the Latin American & Latine/x Studies Program and La Casa Cultural Latina. Stetson University. DeLand, FL. 26 February 2024.
Keynote Speaker. Be Bold Be Brave: Critical Conversations About All Things Barbie.
WCU Department of Women’s and Gender Studies: The Pennsylvania Women’s and Gender Studies Open Educational Resource. West Chester University of Pennsylvania. West Chester, PA. 10 November 2023.
Book Launch: A Celebration and Conversation with Dr. Emily Aguiló-Pérez.
West Chester University of Pennsylvania. West Chester, PA. 5 April 2022
Transmediating Texts for Children: The Case of Board Books. Object Talks II: What Books as Material Artifacts Reveal. Presented by WCU Center for Book History and FHG Special Collections. West Chester University. West Chester, PA. (via Zoom). 31 March 2021.
Good Alice, Naughty Alice: What Has Turned Alice into an Adult? Fall 2011 Meeting of the Lewis Carroll Society of North America. New York Institute of Technology. New York, NY. 12 November 2011.
https://www.lewiscarroll.org/event/alice-at-nyit-fall-2011-meeting/