I am a native speaker of German from a small town in northern Germany called Stade. I received myPh.D. from the University of Texas at Austin after having obtained the equivalent of a Master's Degree in translation from the Johannes-Gutenberg University of Mainz at Germersheim. Before coming to the University of Illinois in 1999, I taught for two years at the University of Oregon.

In the Department of Germanic Languages, I am the undergraduate advisor and also the coordinator of our Business German program. I also teach undergraduate classes in German language and graduate and undergraduate classes in German applied linguistics (conversation analysis, pragmatics, sociolinguistics, etc.). Additionally, I am involved in the SLATE program of the University of Illinois. I hold appointments in the Department of Germanic Languages and Literatures, Linguistics, and English as an International Language.

My research interests lie primarily in conversation analysis, specifically in culture and communication, grammar in interaction, and web chats. With respect to pedagogy, I am interested in German for specific purposes (e.g., Business German), and multimedia in the classroom.

In my spare time I enjoy reading, travelling, running and hiking, and playing with my feline friend Nikki.

Created and maintained by Andrea Golato.  Last updated on March 14, 2008.  Please send comments and feedback to golato@uiuc.edu