Valentina Julieta De Loof holds a Bachelor´s Degree in International Relations from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She has worked as an English professor and Cultural Ambassador for the Spanish Ministry of Education in Madrid, Spain. She has recently finished her Master program in Spanish Literature at the Complutense University of Madrid. Her research interests are 19th and 20th Century Spanish and Latin American Literature, Afro-Brazilian cultural production (capoeira, literature & music), and Foreign language acquisition (Spanish and English).