ʃiː ɹᵻsˈiːvd ɐ bˈiː.ˈeɪ. fɹʌm bˈɛnɪŋtən kˈɑːlɪdʒ ɪn nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd sˈɛvənti tˈuː, ænd ɐn ˈɛm.ˈeɪ. fɹʌm sˈɪɾi kˈɑːlɪdʒ ʌv nˈuː jˈɔːɹk ɪn nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd sˈɛvənti fˈaɪv, ænd ɐn ˈɛm.ˈɛf.ˈeɪ. fɹʌmðɪ ˈaɪəwɚ ɹˈaɪɾɚz wˈɜːkʃɑːp, jˌuːnɪvˈɜːsᵻɾi ʌv ˈaɪəwə ɪn nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd ˈeɪɾi θɹˈiː.
She received a B.A. from Bennington College in 1972, and an M.A. from City College of New York in 1975, and an M.F.A. from the Iowa Writers' Workshop, University of Iowa in 1983.