He earned his Bachelor and Master of Arts degrees in English (with specializations in literature, sociolinguistics and cultural studies) at West University and Gothenburg University (respectively) in Sweden. He completed his second Master’s as well as a Ph.D. in comparative literature with a focus on media and globalization studies at the Pennsylvania State University. He is fluent in French, English, Swedish, Swahili and Luo. His forthcoming article, “Syllabusing: Mapping Appalachian Texts onto a World Literature Curriculum,” situates Appalachian writings within comparative and global perspectives.