Graziella Postolache, Ph.D. Assistant Teaching Professor of French and Spanish
Ph. D. in French Language, Literature, and Francophone Studies (2010), Graduate Certificate in Women and Gender Studies (2010) from Washington University in St Louis; Teaching Certification in French and Spanish (2007).
Graziella’s research developed in two directions. Literature and Gender Studies and Language Education and Cultural Studies. She spoke publicly and published on the literary genre of dialogue by French and Italian women authors of The XVIth-Century-Renaissance, the medical discourse about women, and the self-representation of the speaking subject of the same period.
Graziella is a multilingual educator with a focus on Romance Languages. She came to UMSL with a teaching experience in different institutions, levels of language acquisition, and cultures, one of which was a five-year UN-led program in Central America. Graziella taught and designed French and Spanish language, literature, and culture courses such as advanced topics in literature, film, conversation, writing, introduction to language and culture, and cultural gastronomy. She taught in hybrid, online and in-person modalities using current educational technology. She is the recipient of The Kemper Award for Excellence in Teaching (Webster University, 2021) and other teaching and outstanding service awards. At UMSL, Graziella teaches French, Spanish, and a course on Languages and Identities from a student-centered approach, focusing on proficiency-based language instruction, language awareness, multilingualism, and inclusion.
Additionally, Graziella serves in different capacities for professional organizations (local and international), promotes Integral Education with Mindfulness, translation studies, community partnership, and is a referee for UMSL Global. This year she serves on the Committee for Community and Partnership in her department. Graziella likes to integrate her side interests in travel, cultural gastronomy, and dance into her teaching.
