MARIA LUISA GARCIA-VERDUGO (MARISA) is a native of Cáceres, Extremadura, Spain. She was appointed primary reviewer of the National Spanish Examinations in 2010.  Marisa holds a B.A. in education from the Universidad de Extremadura in Cáceres, Spain; an M.A. from Michigan State University at East Lansing in Hispanic literature and linguistics; and a Ph.D. in Hispanic Studies from the State University of New York at Albany.  Marisa currently serves as the Acting Head of the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures at Purdue University Calumet.