Letania Ferreira, PhD



Skills

Languages | Python, JavaScript, HTML, CSS, SQL
Frameworks & Libraries | Flask, SQLAlchemy, Django, AngularJS, Bootstrap, Jinja, NLTK, Spacy
Database & Industry Tools | PostgreSQL, Git, GitHub, Command Line, Docker
Tools/Software | Praat, SPSS
Natural Languages | Portuguese: Native, English: Near native, Spanish: Near native, French: Fluent, Italian: Conversational


Key Projects

Language Learning - Designed and programmed command-line app using open-source version control system.

Dining Hero - Developed food recommendation web app, integrated Google Places API and Twilio API, utilized 3rd party libraries, incorporated Postgres ORM to query database, applied test-driven development.


Work Experience

Software Engineer Intern, Texas Advanced Computing Center (Austin)
2018
- Built and tested AngularJS and Django based web applications to allow research scientists to send workloads to supercomputers and validate/view results
- Added new features and fixed bugs. Upgraded codebase and expanded test ratio using containerization tool

Assistant professor, Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco (Cabo, Brazil)
2015 - 2017
- Published peer reviewed articles, led research projects and collaborated with other scholars and advisees
- Organized Segunda Semana das Engenharias and participated in many committees

Postdoctoral Fellow, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco (Recife, Brazil)
2013 - 2015
- Published peer reviewed papers by developing acoustic and statistic voice analysis
- Built large variational research database and organized IV SIS VOGAIS

Senior Linguist, C.E.S.A.R. (Recife, Brazil)
Spring 2013
- Managed group of language specialists developing database and semantic classification
- Coordinated with client and colaborated with testers and software engineers

Assistant professor, Augustana College (Rock Island, IL)
2008 - 2013
- Developed collaborative, multidisciplinary research resulting in publications, conference presentations and well-received funding applications
- Directed Summer in the Andes study abroad program

Visiting instructor, Illinois Wesleyan University (Bloomington, IL)
2007 - 2008
- Led group work, advised students, delivered talks and lectured classes

Lectrice d’anglais, Université de Liège (Liège, Belgium)
2006 - 2007
- Led group activities, evaluated students speech skills and recommended enhancement exercises

Ph.D Candidate and Teaching Assistant, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
2000 - 2006
-Completed a dissertation project on the acoustic correlates of stress in Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese
-Taught Spanish and Portuguese courses resulting in inclusion on excellent teacher list

Master Candidate and Teaching Assistant, University of Georgia at Athens
1998 - 2000
-Completed a thesis project on Comparative literary pieces
-Taught Portuguese courses and tutored athlete students

Education

Software Engineering, Hackbright Academy, San Francisco, CA

Ph. D. Romance Linguistics (focus Acoustic Phonetics), The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

MA in Romance Languages The University of Georgia at Athens

B. A. in Portuguese and English, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco – Recife, Brazil


Selected Publications

Sessarego, S.; Ferreira, L. (2016) Spanish and Portuguese Parallels: Impoverished Number Agreement as a Vernacular Feature of Two Rural Dialects. Issues in Hispanic and Lusophone Linguistics, 8, p. 283-304
Ferreira, L. (2015) They don’t agree, do they? Signs of verbal agreement productivity in Recife. Signum: Estudos da Linguagem, 18 (1), p. 189-212.
Ferreira, L. and Holt, D. E. (2014) On the partially divergent phonology of Spanish, Portuguese and points in between. Issues in Hispanic and Lusophone Linguistics, 1, p. 123-150.
Ferreira, L. (2011) Peaks and Plateaux: Different F0 Patterns Representing the Same Category. Revista Linguística, UFRJ, 7 (1), 1-13.


Scholarships, Grants and Awards

Desenvolvimento Científico Regional FACEPE/CNPq, Brazil, jun 2013.
New Faculty Research Grant, Augustana College, Rock Island, Jan 2011.
New Faculty Research Grant, Augustana College, Rock Island, Jan 2010.
Academic Scholarship, Université de Liège, Belgium, Sept. 2006 - May 2007.
Excellence in Teaching Award, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Spring 2002, Spring 2004, Spring 2005 and Fall 2005.
CLACS grant for field research, Center of Latin American and Caribbean Studies, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Summer 2001.
Straight A’s Award, Intensive English Institute, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1998.
Most-Improved IEI TOEFL score, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Spring 1998.

Work Related Activities

Founding Member, NEI Study Group
Manuscript Reviewer, several publications
Organizing Team Member, IV SIS-vogais, II SEENG conferences
Graduate Student's Representative, University of Georgia