Laura Hammond BFA in ceramic art from the University of Washington-Seattle SASLI program coordinator Contact information: Office: 203 Ingraham Hall Phone: 608-265-4304 E-mail: sasli@southasia.wisc.edu

Laura Hammond has been the SASLI program coordinator since the inaugural Summer of SASLI in 2003. Laura has a BFA in ceramic art from the University of Washington-Seattle. Laura has been overseas for both work, travel and education. As an art student, Laura completed a semester in Rome with the University of Washington - Seattle and learned conversational Italian during this stay. From 1990-1991, she taught English in Taipei, Taiwan and travelled extensively throughout Asia, where she learned both Mandarin and Indonesian. In 1986-1987, she also lived and worked in London as a work exchange student on the Council for International Educational Exchange. These travel experiences have given her an important edge in understanding the specific challenges of language acquisition as well as the need for language skills for any student who is interested in study, work, research or travel abroad.