Lucinda earned her bachelor's degree from Purdue University in linguistics, French, and Russian. As an undergraduate, she worked as a research assistant in language preservation at Purdue’s IELLab and studied the Russian language in St. Petersburg during her junior year. Following her undergraduate studies, Lucinda spent two years living in the Transnistria region and the Autonomous Territorial Unit of Gagauzia in Moldova through the Fulbright Program. During that time, she developed an interest in breakaway territories and language policy of former Soviet countries. Her current research interests include disputed territories, language policy, and identity in the Black Sea region.