Dr. Marie-Christine Weidmann Koop is originally from Cannes, where she grew up. She moved to the United States as a student and holds a Ph.D. from Michigan State University. She is professor of French and Director of the French Summer Institute at the University of North Texas in Denton, where she teaches advanced cou
rses in French civilization and culture. She has published several books and articles, mostly on issues related to contemporary France, and she is a regular presenter at national and international conferences.
She is currently editing a forthcoming volume on the French education system. Her contributions to the profession have been recognized by her university, and she is the recipient of several national and international awards. She was named a Knight, and then an Officer, in the French Order of Academic Palms and she received a medal from the Quebec Order of Francophones in America.
She has also received several national awards in the United States: Excellence in Teaching Award from the American Association of Teachers of French (AATF) and the Nelson Brooks Award for Excellence in the Teaching of Culture from the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL). She has secured several grants from the American, French, Belgian, Swiss and Quebec governments to organize seminars for French teachers abroad. She was department chair for eight years and is past president of the American Association of Teachers of French.
She is now Assistant Editor for The French Review and serves on the editorial board of Contemporary French Civilization.