Dr. Clay Houchens first became interested in the language, culture and literature of Spain at the age of fourteen when she and her family lived on the island of Mallorca for a year. As a result of having lived abroad, she chose to major in Spanish at Davidson College (1978), then went on to earn a Master's degree at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (1984) and a Ph.D. at the University of Oregon (1992). As an undergraduate, she studied Spanish literature in Seville in 1975 and was fortunate to be able to return to that city to teach English in 1984. Since then, she and her husband David have traveled through Spain during the summer months. She would also like to visit Mexico and parts of Latin America in the near future. Dr. Houchens enjoys teaching all levels of Spanish. Her research interests include contemporary Spanish poetry and fiction by women writers.