Shauna holds a PhD in Cultural Studies from George Mason University. She was most recently an instructor teaching on a range of topics from Community Engagement to African American Studies. During her tenure at George Mason, Dr. Rigaud received the Spirit of King Graduate Student Award and was Associate Director of the Office of Community Engagement and Civic Learning. Her research ranges widely across topics related to the Caribbean Diaspora – including Carnival Culture, Black Studies, and performance. She has published on the history of resistance in the Caribbean and the musical genre soca as a repository of postcolonial realities and has a recent co-authored chapter in the The Routledge International Handbook of Critical Participatory Inquiry in Transnational Research Contexts. Shauna is a lover of soca music and enjoys traveling to the Caribbean to participate in carnival celebrations. She is co-founder of Mayhem246, a concierge company that curates experiences for visitors to Barbados’ Crop Over Festival and a member of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Incorporated.