Leadership

Taunya is a Salt Lake City native who is passionate about higher education and the humanities. She joined the College of Humanities as Assistant Dean for Undergraduate Affairs in 2010, and has been working with Humanities Scholars since its inception in 2015. Taunya’s research interests include student success and empowerment, the first-year experience, and access to higher education. Taunya has taught English in Morocco and Italy, served as teacher trainer in the Philippines for the U.S. Peace Corps, and guided educational tours throughout Italy, including the U’s Humanities in Motion program in Rome. She firmly believes the world is the greatest classroom of all and derives great joy from roaming the earth for insight. Taunya received her M.A.T. from the School for International Training and her B.A. in English from the University of Utah and is currently working toward her Ed.D. in educational leadership & policy. When she is not at the U, she enjoys playing in Utah’s mountains and deserts, soaking up Italy’s antiquities, and wandering the woods of Germany with her family.

Lepa Espinoza is assistant professor of English. Her research interests include trends in high impact practices for equitable student engagement and the effects of explicit literacy instruction in both secondary and post-secondary education. In addition, she is interested in the relationship between popular culture and adolescence and adolescent representations in literature, specifically the notion of stereotypes and the ways in which young protagonists navigate institutional power dynamics to establish agency and subvert typical views. Among other literature courses, Lepa teaches adolescent literature and a methodology course for English Language Arts teacher candidates. She hopes her students approach literature (and life) with a questioning stance, make plausible connections among seemingly disparate topics, and most importantly, stay curious and passionate about something that can benefit humanity.

Ashley is an academic advising coordinator in International and Area Studies but a lifetime student of the humanities. As an undergraduate, Ashley studied English, history, and communication at a small liberal-arts college in South Carolina but moved to Salt Lake City to continue her education through a master’s degree in the Department of History. Through her graduate study, she further developed interests in topics of inequality, access to education, lasting impacts of colonialism, gender, and more. After graduating, she moved to Wuhan, China to teach academic and business writing and filled any time off from teaching with traveling. From her experiences abroad and years of working in numerous roles as an adviser and mentor, she has become passionate about international education and believes that understanding different histories, cultures, and languages allows us to better communicate with and better contribute to our local and global communities. Outside of advising, Ashley spends time perfecting her biscuit recipe, attempting to read fifty-two books each year, excelling at board games, and planning her next international adventure.

Megan became a member of the Career & Professional Development team in June 2017. Prior to that, Megan served as a Learning Abroad Coordinator at the University of Utah for a year and a half. Before coming to the U, Megan was an on-site intern for a US college study abroad program in Managua, Nicaragua. She also taught English as a Second Language in Boston for two years and Tanzania for one year. Since moving to Utah in 2016, Megan has enjoyed getting outside and taking advantage of Utah’s beautiful trails! She is passionate about traveling, learning languages, and very much enjoys getting to know and working with people from different cultures, backgrounds, and identities.