Evelyn Milburn is a white, queer, American woman. She grew up in San Rafael, CA, on the traditional lands of the Coast Miwok people and the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria. She went to college at UC Davis in Yolo county, CA, and grad school at the University of Pittsburgh in Allegheny county, PA, and now resides in Fargo, ND. Neither of her parents finished college. She is a native speaker of Mainstream US English and her accent is generally perceived as neutral. Although she has spent time living as a non-native speaker and learner in an environment where a non-English language was dominant, most of her life has been spent living in places where the dialect of English she speaks is perceived as prestigious. As a scholar, Evelyn has trained and conducted research in psychology and linguistics, both fields that have histories of dominance and oppression. She is dedicated to understanding how we use knowledge above and beyond words to support real-time language comprehension, particularly focusing on world knowledge and figurative language. Evelyn acknowledges that it is easy to flatten the diversity of language use and experience in scholarly research and not acknowledge variation. She strives to account for the diversity of language experience through her research program. Evelyn is an assistant professor of psychology at NDSU.
Lusi (she\hers) is a White, Russian-born student (soon, alumni), who received her original Bachelors of Psychology in a Russian-based University, with strong focus on both Russian schools of thought and therapeutic practices and on the appreciation of diversity of opinions and approaches in the field of Psychology.
(Currently) She is a Senior in the Undergraduate Psychology program at NDSU, involved in language research in Dr. Milburn’s laboratory.
(Soon) She is a recent graduate of NDSU Psychology program, (...)
As an international student, being brought up in a bilingual environment since childhood she recognizes, appreciates and is fascinated by the variability of language and the challenges that a change of a language environment can bring. With her background in Psychology and deep interest in the study of people, she finds herself evermore enthralled by the depths of both literal and figurative meanings that each person brings into the discussion of language.
In her pursuit of professionalism and new discoveries in the study of language she acknowledges that her ability to engage in those interests is a privilege that not everybody is afforded, and thus, she is dedicated to use her professional skills for good (to move ethical science forward).