Jennifer Selke Ramirez

Jennifer Selke Ramirez (1984- ) was born and raised in St. Louis, MO where she attended kindergarten through 12th grade in the Hazelwood School District in Florissant, MO. Jennifer attended college at Washington University in St. Louis where she majored in International and Area Studies: East Asian Studies.

While in college, Jennifer met her husband, Rafael Ramirez. Upon completion of her Bachelors degree, Jennifer relocated to Chicago in 2006 to pursue a Masters of Science in Elementary Education from Northwestern University, and to be nearer to Rafael who had found employment in Chicago in 2005. Jennifer and Rafael married in 2009 and welcomed their adorable twins, Madeline and Joe, into their lives in 2016.

Jennifer has been an educator in the field of bilingual education since completion of her Masters degree in 2007. She began teaching ESL and Bilingual Spanish in Alsip, a southwest suburb of Chicago during the 2007-2008 school year. She taught there for three years, and then became an editor for a small math curriculum company. In 2012, Jennifer re-entered the public school system as a district-level administrator in the Chicago Public Schools Office of Language and Cultural Education where she worked for six years before transitioning back to the classroom in order to spend more time with her children while they are still little.

Jennifer has always enjoyed writing and editing everything from poetry and children's books to novels. Over the years, Jennifer has used her writing talents on many freelance projects as well as in her positions as an editor and school district administrator. Jennifer inherited her artistic abilities from her mother's side of the family and has always enjoyed drawing for pleasure as well as, occasionally, for profit.