Jes­si­ca Roda is an assis­tant pro­fes­sor of Jew­ish Civ­i­liza­tion and George­town Uni­ver­si­ty. Trained as an anthro­pol­o­gist and eth­no­mu­si­col­o­gist, she is the author of The Judeo-Span­ish of France (2018) and For Women and Girls Only. She is also a trained pianist and mod­ern jazz dancer and grew up in French Guiana, a child­hood that shaped her as a per­son, edu­ca­tor, and writer