• Born in Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas and raised in Laredo, Texas, I am intimately bound to the US-Mexico border region. As a scholar, I focus on issues of borders and boundaries whether in academic disciplines or the geopolitical borderlands of Mexico and the United States, all through a Chicana feminist theoretical lens. I write poetry and prose, what I call creative autobioethnography, also with a focus on the borderlands and heavily rooted in the cultural traditions of the region. My life formation as a working-class Chicana shapes my intellectual and aesthetic endeavors and impels me to act to deconstruct the oppressive structures that exist in society. I passionately believe that words have power and that literature has the potential to create the change we need. I work with my students to use the power of their stories and their words to create a better world for all sentient beings.

    • Ph.D. in English from the University of Nebraska, Lincoln
    • M.A. in English and Political Science from Texas A&I, Kingsville
    • B.S. in Education (English and Political Science) from Texas A&I, Laredo

    The US-Mexico Borderlands, Chicana Literature, Folklore, Literary Theory

    • The US Latinx Experience
    • US Latinx Cultural and Artistic Expressions
    • Folklore
    • Creative Writing

    Most Recent: 

    • Inducted into the San Antonio Women’s Hall of Fame
    • Lifetime Achievement in Literary Arts Recognition by  The Gemini Ink Literary organization at Inkstravaganza
    • Tejano Heritage Award, Texas A&M, Kingsville
    • Galardón Don Luis Leal from the HISPAUSA organization based at the Instituto Franklin at the Universidad de Alcalá de Henares. June 21, Barcelona June
    • Outstanding Alumni Award, Texas A&I Alumni Association, Kingsville, Texas
    • Luis Leal Literary Achievement Award, University of California, Santa Barbara
    • American Folklore Society, Lifetime Achievement Award
    • Texas Institute of Letters, member 
    • Latin American Studies Association Latina/o Studies Section, Frank Bonilla Public Intellectual Award 
    • Escuela Tlatelolco’s Champion of Change Award for Art, Literature, & Culture, Denver, Colorado
    • Letras de Aztlán, NACCS Tejas Foco 
    • Beca Nebrija de Creación Literaria, Instituto Franklin, Universidad de Alcalá de Henares    
    • Fellow of the American Folklore Society
    • Américo Paredes Distinguished Lecture, UT-Austin
    • Exceptional Texas Woman, Veteran Feminists of America, Texas
    • Elvira Cordero de Cisneros Macondo Foundation Award
    •  National Association of Chicana and Chicano Studies Scholar of the Year
    • Cátedra Laboris from the Universidad de Monterrey, Monterrey, Nuevo León
    • Past President, American Folklore Society
    • Board Member, Esperanza Peace and Justice Center
    • Founder and Director, Society for the Study of Gloria Anzaldúa