She received her Ph.D at the University of Wisconsin-Madison where her dissertation research was on Russian and Soviet science fiction. Her ongoing interests include instructional design and technology in language teaching, and she completed a second Master's degree in instructional design in 2015. Shannon has also taught at Middlebury College, Dalhousie University, for the University of Minnesota's STARTALK courses, and has worked as part of the RAILS project (an award-winning project that targeted advanced listening skills in students of Russian) and for Learning Support Services (a group that assists instructors in use of technology in teaching).