Originally from Seattle, Washington, Gwen Murray is also a 2004 graduate of Smith College, having majored in Government and Portuguese and having completed the Brazilian Studies Program. She earned her M.A. from the Stone Center in 2010 after completing a thesis entitled '(Re)Presenting the Periphery: Co-Production and Self-Representation in Contemporary Brazilian Television and New Media.' Gwen has traveled throughout Latin America and spent time in Argentina, Ecuador, Mexico and Puerto Rico. She has spent significant time in Brazil working and researching. Prior to joining the Stone Center, Gwen worked as the Development Coordinator and Public Relations Manager for the Dreams Can Be Foundation in Rio de Janeiro and served as a translator for Jeff Zimbalist's 2005 documentary film, Favela Rising. Since 2009, Gwen has served as an academic tutor and mentor for the Urban League College Track in New Orleans. At Tulane, Gwen focused her research on Brazil, media and development and democratization. She has presented her research at several conferences and also co-authored a book review of Pamela Wilson and Michelle Stewart's 2008 collection Global Indigenous Media: Cultures, Poetics and Politics along with Tulane Communication professor Vicki Mayer and fellow graduate student Melina Leodas. In 2009, she was the recipient of a summer research fellowship from the Tinker Foundation. During the 2010-2011 academic year, Gwen served as a Jones Scholar Intern for the Cowen Institute for Public Education Initiatives. After defending her dissertation entitled “Latino Families, Parental Engagement, and Public Education in New Orleans: How LEP Families Navigate a Decentralized Educational System and Make Decisions for Their Children,” Gwen graduated in May of 2017 with her Ph.D. in Latin American Studies.
