About this event

Author Bios for Presenters (Alpha-Sorted), as Available.

Names: A 

Luz Acosta, Assistant Professor, Saint Xavier University

Dr. Luz Acosta (she/her/ella) is an Assistant Professor at Saint Xavier University- Chicago. She was born and raised in Little Village, Chicago to immigrant parents from Durango, Mexico and earned her Ph.D. from the Department of Criminology, Law and Justice at the University of Illinois Chicago. Her research and teaching interests include the carceral state, race and the criminal legal system, the criminalization of marginalized folks, crimmigration, surveillance studies, mass incarceration and racial justice issues. Her current research centers on the hyper-criminalization of the Latinx community. She has taught at Governors State University and was a recipient of the Diversifying Higher Education Faculty in Illinois Fellowship (2017-21) and the Institute for Research on Race and Public Policy Dissertation Research Grant (2021 and 2025). She was also the recipient of the UIC IUPLR Mellon Fellowship (2022-2023).

 

Cynthia Acosta-Pizana, Nurse, Renown

Cynthia Acosta-Pizana is a healthcare professional Renown Health, where she brings her expertise and passion for patient centered care to one of Nevada's largest healthcare systems. As a proud Latina, she advocates for equitable access to healthcare resources, particularly for Spanish speaking and immigrant families navigating complex systems. Her work highlights the importance of representation in health care and the vital role of bilingual professionals in ensuring that patients feel heard and cared for. Cynthia has worked with Spanish speaking and immigrant families to navigate language barriers, providing reassurance and connection in moments of uncertainty. Her advocacy underscores the importance of representation in healthcare, where patients often feel most supported when their providers share cultural and linguistic ties, strengthening patient trust and improve healthcare outcomes. She remains committed to uplifting her community and mentoring others who aspire to enter the field. Cynthia’s work reflects her dedication to honoring her heritage while advancing equity and justice in healthcare.

 

Bernardo Aguilar

Bernardo is the Coordinator for Education, Research and Outreach for the Latino Research Center (LRC). In this capacity, Bernardo oversees the Border-Lines Journal publication process, provides guidance in the creation of Fact Sheets with the help of various stakeholders. He plays a key role in providing research-based events for the community such as financial workshops, resource tabling, and research data collection. Bernardo also oversees the Latino Insights Podcast which aligns episodes to research the LRC is involved with, and he serves as a liaison, connecting community members and partner organizations to each other and to the larger university campus.  In addition, Bernardo also holds a B.A in Secondary Education and a B.A. in Spanish. He enjoyed teaching in various schools, including Title 1 schools in Northern Nevada for nearly 20 years.

 

Armen Álvarez, Postdoctoral Fellow, Western Michigan University

Armen Alvarez is a transdisciplinary scholar specializing in Indigenous epistemologies and decolonizing research methodologies. Born in Puerto Rico, their research emerges from embodied participation in Bomba ceremonial practices and explores how ancestral knowledge systems offer sophisticated alternatives to Eurocentric academic paradigms. Their work bridges community-based knowledge production with contemporary qualitative research, advocating for methodological sovereignty within Indigenous and Afro-Caribbean contexts.

 

Dolly Amaya, Faculty Member, Harvard University

Dr. Dolly Amaya, a financial educator, a Harvard graduate with 3 master’s degrees and a Ph.D in business in economics. She loves to share her three passions as: Educator, Agent of Social Change and Entrepreneur Dr. Dolly operates two successful enterprises: A team of financial educators as World System Builders, whose mission is to help build and protect wealth for families and individuals from all walks of life, and a social enterprise established for the purpose of stabilizing and revitalizing communities through the vehicle of financial literacy while providing opportunities in entrepreneurship. Dr. Amaya is a faculty member, but she considers her role as an agent of social change to be the most important of all. Thus, she founded two successful non-profit organizations as well as the Harvard Extension Entrepreneurship Association and served as the Vice- President of the Harvard Graduate Student Government concurrently as the Chair of several Harvard Leadership Conferences. As a Harvard graduate, she actively involved herself in a range of Harvard-wide activities and led over thirty different events.

 

Judith Aponte, Associate Professor, Hunter College

Dr. Judith Aponte is a bilingual Hispanic nurse, educator, researcher and speaker. She is a tenured associate professor at the School of Nursing at Hunter College, City University of New York. Her research focus is on Hispanics with diabetes. She examines diabetes and diabetes-related issues affecting Hispanics subgroups, and compares the different subgroups. She involves Hispanic nurses and nursing studies on her research team, presents with them on research findings, and includes them on publications emerging from the research. She is the editor-in-chief of the Hispanic Health Care International, the official journal of the National Association of Hispanic Nurses; member of the Council of Business Advisor’s of NAHN, fellow at the Academy of Medicine, sub-committee member for the American Diabetes Association, and 1st Vice Chair of the Community Advisory Board of Metropolitan Hospital Center. She was the first Hispanic to graduate from Columbia University’s School of Nursing PhD program.

 

Adrián Aragonés, Professor, University of Texas-El Paso

Adrián Aragonés is an Assistant Professor of Instruction in Chicano Studies at the University of Texas-El Paso, where his work bridges academic research with community engagement. As a first-generation college student who identifies as Mexican, Mexican American, and Chicano, he brings authentic lived experience to his scholarship on cultural identity in educational settings. Professor Aragonés holds a Master's degree in U.S.-Mexico Borderland History from UTEP, where his thesis examined veiled racism and implicit segregation, and is currently pursuing his doctorate in Teaching-Learning and Culture. His research focuses on imposter syndrome among Mexican American students at border colleges, particularly within Hispanic-serving institutions, addressing a critical gap in understanding how bicultural identity shapes academic experiences. Fluent in English, Spanish, and Spanglish, Professor Aragonés teaches courses including Introduction to Chicano Studies and Cultural Diversity & Youth while serving as the Chicano Studies Community Engagement & Outreach Coordinator.

 

Job Armengol, Student, University of Texas-El Paso

Job Ismael Armengol is a student at the University of Texas at El Paso pursuing a Double BA in English and American Literature and Chicano Studies. One of his academic interests is understanding the social circumstances of Mexican American students from Bowie High School. Currently, Job is part of UTEP’s Liberal Arts Honors Program. His prospective Honors project is doing a comparison between William Shakespeare’s classic texts with Borderland adaptations of his texts from a Chicano perspective. One of the most important endeavors that Job performed at UTEP is participating in the Faculty Led Program Maya Immersion in Quintana Roo (Mexico) - Maymester, 2025. This study abroad experience taught him about the importance of community as a social construct to demystify the notion that success within a given community is an innate trait. Therefore, Job’s overall academic goal is to become a lawyer to help the Segundo Barrio with immigration policy.

 

Ron Aryel, Physician, Every Mind Matters

Ron Aryel, M.D., M.B.A., overcame deep prejudice and hostility in medical school and residency training targeting his mild physical handicap to become an award-winning pediatrician and disaster medicine physician. He also helped develop the United States’ first biosurveilance system, and coedited the first textbook to describe the principles and practices of this branch of data science. In addition to his pediatric practice, Dr. Aryel co-led the development of a COVID Risk Meter and COVID Prediction Tool that helped prevent thousands of deaths during the pandemic. His awards include a tribute by Senator Dean Heller, the Distinguished Alumnus Award from Drexel University School of Medicine, a City of Reno, Nevada, Proclamation, and awards from the CDC, the America Cancer Society and Immunize Nevada. He is Executive Director of Every Mind Matters, a non-profit supporting poor students through college.

Names: B

Martín Balmaceda, Assistant Professor of Theatre Performance, University of Texas-El Paso

Martin V. Balmaceda is an Assistant Professor of Theatre at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP), where he brings over 25 years of experience directing and performing in contemporary theatre across the U.S. and Latin America. He holds an MFA in Theatre from Sarah Lawrence College and a BA in Creative Arts and Human Behavior from SUNY Empire State College, with additional certification in Drama Therapy from The New School. His scholarly and artistic work centers on Latinx theatre, with a particular focus on cultural identity, social justice, and community engagement. In New York City, Balmaceda was actively involved in the Latinx theatre scene, co-founding La Micro Theater and collaborating with artists exploring immigrant narratives and bilingual performance. He has directed award-winning productions internationally and integrates physical theatre, performance studies, and social-emotional learning into his pedagogy. He is a member of the Lincoln Center Theater Directors Lab and ATHE.

 

Yaritza Benites Mora, Student, ORVIS

Yaritza Benites Mora is a first-generation student, majoring in nursing at the ORVIS school of nursing. With family roots in Zacatecas, Tepechitlan, she values the sacrifices her family has made to give her the opportunity to pursue higher education. She is passionate about giving back to her community and hopes to use her nursing career to make a meaningful difference in the lives of others. Particularly by advocating for patients in underserved backgrounds and ensuring they feel heard and cared for. Yaritza has worked at Renown health for several years, where she has strengthened her communication skills and witness firsthand the importance of advocacy in patient care. Yaritza hopes to continue growing her clinical skills, explore opportunities in critical care and travel nursing, where she hopes to continue to advance her skills while experiencing diverse healthcare settings, beyond nursing, she values mentorship, cultural representation, and using her platform to empower other. Yaritza’s journey embodies resilience, pride in her heritage, and deep commitment to making meaningful change through nursing practice.

 

Rod Bravo

Rodrigo Bravo is a Bolivian-American MD candidate at the University of Arizona, is the first Reiki Master to integrate energy medicine into the school’s Integrative Medicine Clinic. He co-founded Bravo Conscious Health (BCH), which creates tools to help patients and physicians safely navigate global healing traditions, particularly for complex or chronic conditions. Rooted in Bolivia’s Andean-Catholic pluralism, Bravo’s worldview was shaped by his own childhood illness, spiritual practices, and a medically unexplained remission. His training at Harvard, Yale, and the Osher Center deepened his commitment to bridging biomedical and spiritual approaches. Bravo’s work highlights how Latino presence in medicine expands not only representation but also the very definitions of healing and integrative care.

 

Cynthia Brito, Ph.D. Candidate, University of Illinois, Chicago

Cynthia Brito is a PhD Candidate in the Department of Urban Planning and Policy at the University of Illinois, Chicago. Cynthia's research examines mutual aid efforts and the city of Chicago’s response during the humanitarian migrant crisis in 2023. Using a qualitative data set of 35 in-depth interviews with Chicago residents and city officials, her analysis draws on critical environmental justice and racial capitalism frameworks. Cynthia is a long-time community organizer in areas of racial justice, abolition, and immigration. Cynthia originates from a working-class, first-generation Mexican family that settled in Chicago’s Uptown.

 

Marlene Brito (named spelled differently in conference agenda), Associate Director of Belonging, New York University

Dr. Marlene Brito (she/her/ella) is a Scholar Practitioner with an 18 year track record designing, implementing and executing DEI engagement strategies in communities of color across a variety of sectors. Dr. Brito leads the Belonging and Inclusion team at the Wasserman Center for Career Development, in her role as Associate Director she oversees all identity-based programming and initiatives, she co-leads the IDBEA Cross Functional Group and leads identity based employer engagement and partnerships. Prior to joining the Wasserman Center, she served as the Senior Administrator for the Department of Social and Cultural Analysis at New York University, in this role she provided financial and administrative oversight of the department featuring 10 academic programs and 23 faculty members. Prior to joining NYU, Dr. Brito served as the Director of Programs at National Urban Fellows Leadership Development Program, in this capacity she was responsible for the complete administration of the cornerstone Executive MPA program from recruitment to graduation. National Urban Fellows develops accomplished and courageous professionals of all ethnic and racial backgrounds, particularly people of color and women, to be leaders and change agents in the public and non profit sectors, with a strong commitment to social justice and equity. Marlene served as the inaugural Community Engagement Manager at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts where she was responsible for designing and implementing diversity inclusion strategies for the center’s education offerings and complete portfolio of artistic performances which included broadway, classical, jazz and world music internationally acclaimed artists. Ms. Brito’s work throughout the state earned her various awards and recognitions including the Delaware Valley Most Influential Latino Award, PA Woman Making a Difference Award and Univision’s “Nuestro Orgullo Latino” award. Dr. Brito earned her Bachelors in Economics and Metropolitan Studies from New York University in 2004, her Masters in Public Administration at the Baruch School of Public Affairs as a National Urban Fellow. In 2021, she earned a Masters in Philosophy in Education and in 2023 she earned her PhD in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, she completed her dissertation study on the College to Career Transition of Latinx FGCS.

 

Matias Bosch, Ph.D. Student, Andres Bello University

Matías Bosch Carcuro is doctoral student in Political and Social Processes at Universidad Andrés Bello in Chile. He holds a Master's degree in Management and Public Policy from the University of Chile, as well as a Master's degree in Social Sciences from ARCIS University. He serves as a research professor at various Dominican universities and has published essays, book chapters, and research reports on economic and social issues. He has also coordinated and edited books on critical thought, political processes, and political history.

 

 

Names: C

Carolina Cardoza-Herrera, Student, University of Texas-El Paso

Carolina Cardoza-Herrera is an undergraduate student at the University of Texas at El Paso pursuing a double major in Communications and Psychology. As a second-generation college student but the first to cross regularly from Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua to El Paso, Texas, she navigates the unique cultural landscape of the U.S.-Mexico border, Carolina has experienced firsthand the challenges of bicultural identity and academic belonging that inform her research on imposter syndrome. She is a founding member and current Vice President of SPARCS (Service, Present, Academic, Research, Conference Society), where she leads initiatives to create culturally engaging spaces and a welcoming and supportive climate for diverse student groups. Through her academic work and organizational leadership, Carolina embodies the journey from experiencing persistent feelings of inadequacy to developing resilience and perseverance. Her personal narrative and research contribute to understanding how border college students can move beyond "code-switching between cultural worlds to become confident in their abilities and proud of their unique identities.

 

Vania Carter-Strauss, Professor, ORVIS

Vania Carter-Strauss is a faculty member at the ORVIS school of nursing whose teaching focuses on health equity, nursing leadership, and culturally responsive care. Proud of her Latina heritage, she carries on the her roots and lived experience into her mentorship. She is deeply committed to empowering first generation students and fostering inclusive learning environments that prepare future nurses to advocate for underserved populations. Carter-Strauss’s professional interests focus on health equity, nursing leadership, and strategies to better support underserved populations in both academic and clinical settings. She emphasized the importance of integrating advocacy into nursing practice and views nursing as a discipline that requires both technical skill and social responsibility. Through her teaching she will continue to empower student's to become advocates for justice, diversity, and meaningful change in healthcare.

 

Daniel Chacón, Creative Writing Department Chair, University of Texas-El Paso

Daniel Chacón is an award-winning author, Chair of the Bilingual Creative Writing Department at the University of Texas, El Paso, and a voice at the intersection of literature and ideas. The author of six books, including The Last Philosopher in Texas, his work blends magic, philosophy, and the mysteries of the human mind. His upcoming book, under contract, explores the relationship between creative writing and the brain. Prizes include the American Book Award, the Southwest Book Award, the Pen-Oakland Prize, and the Hudson Prize. He is also the founder and cohost of Words on a Wire, a radio show/podcast celebrating books and creativity.

Alex Chávez, Associate Professor of Anthropology, University of Notre Dame

Scholar-artist-producer, Alex E. Chávez is Associate Professor of Anthropology at the University of Notre Dame, where he is also a Faculty Fellow of the Institute for Latino Studies. His research explores articulations of Latinx sounds and aurality in relation to race, place-making, and the intimacies that bind lives across physical and cultural borders. He is the author of the multi-award-winning book Sounds of Crossing: Music, Migration, and the Aural Poetics of Huapango Arribeño (Duke University Press, 2017)—recipient of three book awards, including the Alan Merriam Prize from the Society for Ethnomusicology (2018)—and has published widely, including in American Anthropologist, Journal of Linguistic Anthropology, Journal of American Folklore, Latino Studies, and Latin American Music Review. He has consistently crossed the boundary between performer and ethnographer in the realms of academic research and publicly engaged work as an artist and producer. Chávez has recorded and toured with his own music projects, composed documentary scores for Emmy Award-winning films, worked closely with Smithsonian Folkways, and collaborated with Grammy Award-winning and Grammy Award-nominated artists. He is co-editor of the volume Ethnographic Refusals / Unruly Latinidades (2022), which grows out of an Advanced Seminar he co-chaired at the School for Advanced Research, and the recently published special issue in American Anthropologist entitled, Amplify. A Fellow of the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Science Foundation, and the Ford Foundation, in 2020 he was named one of ten Mellon Emerging Faculty Leaders by the Institute for Citizens and Scholars. His current book project—Sound City: Place, Poiesis, Xicago—is forthcoming through Duke University Press. He currently serves on the Board of Trustees of the Recording Academy (Grammys).

 

Jessie Clark

Dr. Jessie Clark is an Assistant Professor for the Department of Geography at the University of Nevada, Reno. Before working in Reno, she was an Instructor and Advisor of Undergraduate Studies for the Geography Department at the University of Oregon. Dr. Clark works in areas of feminist, political, and cultural geography and qualitative methods. Her topics of interest include state-society relations, development-security relations, nationalism, ethnicity and gender, religion, migration, and the Middle East.

Aileen Cruz, Graduate Research Assistant, University of Nevada, Reno; Latino Research Center, Community of Bilingual English Spanish Speakers

Aileen Cruz was born and raised in Reno, Nevada, to immigrant parents and is a proud first-generation student. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with an emphasis in Information Systems from the University of Nevada, Reno and is currently pursuing her MBA. Passionate about travel, she believes exploring new places, cultures, and people broadens her perspective—a passion reflected in her fun fact: she has traveled enough miles to circle the globe several times. As a graduate assistant for CBESS, Cruz works to identify opportunities that strengthen resources for student researchers and the community. She is deeply committed to supporting and uplifting the Latino community through education, mentorship, and advocacy. Whether organizing cultural events, offering academic support, or promoting inclusion, Cruz is dedicated to making a positive impact. She looks forward to guiding students on their academic journeys and contributing to their success.

 

Names: D

Josafa Da Cunha, Professor, Federal University of Parana, Brazil

Josafa da Cunha is a Professor of Educational Psychology at the Universidade Federal do Paraná. His primary areas of research include discrimination, bullying and victimization among peers, relationships between students and their teachers, ethnic diversity and academic performance. He belongs to the boards of the Society for Research of Adolescence and the International Society for the Study of Behavioral Development and is the Social Media Editor of the International Society for the Study of Behavioral Development.

 

Ruben Dagda, Associate Professor; Pharmacology, University of Nevada, Reno; Reno School of Medicine

Ruben k. Dagda, Ph.D., is currently investigating the molecular mechanisms that lead to mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress in cell culture, tissue and animal models of Parkinson's disease. Dr. Dagda has authored in 68 research manuscripts, book chapters and review articles in the areas of toxicology, toxinology, mitochondrial function, and neurobiology. At the University of Nevada School of Medicine, he has trained over more than 30 undergraduate students, 5 graduate students as primary or secondary mentor who received their Ph.D., and trained three postdoctoral scholars in his lab. His main research goals are to elucidate the prosurvival signaling pathways that regulate mitochondrial function, transport and turn-over in neurons and how aging and neurodegenerative diseases negatively impact these processes. The end goal is to develop novel small molecular drugs that can reverse neurodegeneration and elevate mitochondrial function in age-related neurodegenerative diseases.

 

Richard Cruz Dávila, Research Specialist, Michigan State University

Richard Cruz Dávila is a researcher with the Julian Samora Research Institute at Michigan State University and a native of the Tejano Midwest. His research documents histories of Mexican American popular music including the history of Texas Mexican music in the Midwest and the emergence of predominantly Latinx punk scenes in Los Angeles and Chicago. His work appears in the Journal of Popular Music Studies, Punk & Post-Punk, and the Michigan Historical Review.

 

Simone Delerme, Associate Professor, University of Mississippi

Dr. Simone Delerme is Associate Professor of Anthropology and Southern Studies (Center for the Study of Southern Culture) at the University of Mississippi. She specializes in migration to the U.S. South, with interests in race relations, integration and incorporation, community development, and social class inequalities. More recently, she has been working with Dr. Pérez on a project focused on Latino/a migration to the U.S. South and the growth of the Latinx Arts in Tennessee and Mississippi.

 

Eduardo Díaz

Eduardo Díaz has spent over 40 years in the museum and cultural center sector, and has recently returned to El Paso after 15 years as Director of the Smithsonian Latino Center and Interim Director of the National Museum of the American Latino in Washington, DC. Previously, he was the Executive Director of the National Hispanic Cultural Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Díaz served for 11 years as Director of Cultural Affairs for the City of San Antonio, and before that managed the historic Guadalupe Theater, from which he directed San Antonio CineFestival, the oldest Latino film festival in the country. He has a B.A. in Latin American Studies from San Diego State University, and a J.D. from UC Davis School of Law.

Eduardo Díaz lleva más de 40 años en el campo de museos y centros culturales. Recientemente regresó a El Paso después de servir por 15 años en la Smithsonian Institution en Washington, DC, como Director del Smithsonian Latino Center y Director Interino del National Museum of the American Latino. Previamente fue Director Ejecutivo del National Hispanic Cultural Center en Albuquerque, Nuevo México. Díaz sirvió de Director de Asuntos Culturales para la Ciudad de San Antonio por 11 años. Antes de sevir en esa capacidad administró el histórico Teatro Guadalupe, sede de donde dirigió San Antonio CineFestival, el más establecido festival de cine latino en el país. Recibió su bachillerato en Estudios Latinoamericanos de San Diego State University, y su doctorado jurídico de la Facultad de Derecho de la Universidad de California, Davis.

Marisol Diaz, Financial Educator, WFG/WSB

Founder & Principal, Amity Insurance Services
Born in Mexico and raised in the United States from the age of nine, Marisol Diaz brings a powerful blend of cultural insight, resilience, and entrepreneurial spirit to everything she does. In her early twenties, she faced the unexpected challenge of immigration process delays that left her without a work permit. During that time, she became a caregiver for a kind gentleman who had suffered brain trauma—an experience that profoundly humbled her and sparked a lifelong passion for serving others with dignity and compassion. A proud wife and mother of four, Marisol began her journey in the insurance and financial industry as a marketing representative and translator for a MetLife agent. She later expanded her expertise through roles at a credit union and as an inventory coordinator for a distribution warehouse, gaining a deep understanding of operations, compliance, and the needs of working families.

In 2011, Marisol became a licensed insurance professional, building hands-on experience at several agencies. These foundations led her to establish Amity Insurance Services in 2018, where she now leads with hands-on care and heartfelt purpose—empowering clients through financial protection that is accessible, culturally sensitive, and rooted in trust.

Marisol enhanced her professional development through studies at Truckee Meadows Community College (TMCC) and the University of Phoenix, strengthening her skills in leadership, communication, and business management. Her excellence in the field was recognized by Allstate, which honored her with Distinguished Agency Awards in both 2018 and 2019. Today, Marisol leads Amity with warmth, integrity, and a deep commitment to empowering families and small businesses—especially within the Hispanic community. Her bilingual expertise, creative outreach, and client-first approach make insurance inclusive, transparent, and empowering. Whether she’s designing educational materials, hosting appreciation events, or advocating for financial literacy, Marisol’s work reflects her belief that protection and empowerment go hand in hand.
 

In her free time, Marisol enjoys spending time in nature, watching a good movie, and dancing—activities that bring her joy, balance, and inspiration.

Esther Díaz Martín, Assistant Professor, University of Illinois Chicago

Esther Díaz Martín is an assistant professor in the department of Latin American and Latino studies and gender and women's studies program at the University of Illinois Chicago. Her book, Radiophonic Feminisms: Latina Voices in the Digital Age of Broadcasting, (UT Press, 2025) theorizes Chicana feminist listening and attends to the political work of Latina voices in contemporary sound media. She is a co-principal investigator of the Latinx Sound Culture Studies-Crossing Latinidades Humanities Research Initiative group (www.soundinglatinx.com). Her work is published in Borderlines, Chicana/Latina Studies, Díalogo, and Sounding Out!

Names: F

Damayra Figueroa-Lazu, Data Hub Coordinator, Centro de Estudios Puertorriqueños (Hunter College – CUNY)

Damayra Figueroa-Lazu is the Data Hub Coordinator at Centro. She manages the Data Hub team and the projects the Data Hub generates in which provide information about Puerto Rico and stateside Puerto Ricans to scholars, policy makers, the public in general as well as to other departments in Centro to assist with their respective projects. Her research interests include socioeconomic disparities, coloniality, race and ethnicity, social stratification, and social movements. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice and a Master of Arts in Sociology from St. John’s University.

Lizbeth Flores-Cortez [TBD]

Daaiyah M. Foster, Student, University of Texas-El Paso

Daaiyah M. Foster is an undergraduate student at the University of Texas at El Paso pursuing a double major in Chicano Studies and History. Embracing both her Mexican and African American ancestry, she navigates the complexities of multicultural identity that inform her research on imposter syndrome among border college students. As a founding member and President of SPARCS (Service, Present, Academic, Research, Conference Society), Daaiyah leads initiatives addressing the pervasive challenge of imposter syndrome while creating culturally engaging spaces and a welcoming and supportive climate for diverse student groups. Her journey reflects the experiences examined in her research: overcoming moments of self-doubt through resilience and perseverance while navigating the emotional costs of code-switching between cultural worlds. Through her academic work and organizational leadership, Daaiyah embodies the transformation from experiencing persistent feelings of inadequacy to fostering environments where students can be confident in their abilities and proud of their unique identities.

Raúl Olmo Fregoso Bailón

Raul Olmo Fregoso Bailón is an Assistant Professor  in the Department of Educational Studies at the University of Nevada, Reno, United States. He is co-author of Teaching as Radical Logic: Dialectics, Analectics and Education (2025).  He is member of the International Advisory Committee of the UNESCO Chair in Democracy, Global Citizenship and Transformative Education. His scholarship has either been published or is forthcoming in edited collections in Spanish and English, including Handbook of Theory and Research in Cultural Studies and Education (Springer), Keywords in Radical Philosophy and Education (Brill) and journals such as European Journal of Cultural Studies, Curriculum Perspectives, Bilingual Research Journal, Revista Historia de la Educación Latinoamericana, Policy Futures in Education, Contextualizaciones Latinoamericanas, Revista Tempos e Espaços em Educação, among other forums.

Norma Fuentes, Graduate Student, University of Massachusetts Boston

Norma Fuentes is a Graduate student in Critical and Ethnic Community Studies at UMass Boston and a Research Assistant at the Gaston Institute for Latino Community Development and Public Policy. She is an alum of the Latino Leadership Opportunity Program.

Names: G

Andrea Galeano, President, University of Texas-El Paso; Movimiento ChucanX

Andrea Galeano is a sophomore at the University of Texas at El Paso, pursuing a double major in Political Science and Chicano Studies with plans to attend law school. She currently serves as President of Movimiento ChucanX and is an active member of the Amanecer Peoples Project. A proud fronteriza, Andrea’s passion for Chicano and Mexican American issues is rooted in her lived experience growing up along the U.S.–Mexico border. Through vivid storytelling and historical insight, she uses her platform within Movimiento ChucanX to educate and engage diverse audiences on the complexities of Mexican American history. Her work is grounded in a commitment to social justice, and she brings knowledge of power building, grassroots organizing, and long-term campaign strategy to her advocacy. Andrea is particularly focused on advancing educational equity and uplifting marginalized communities through collective action and movement-based leadership.

Alondra Galindo-Gonzalez, Student, University of Texas-El Paso

Alondra Galindo-Gonzalez is a student majoring in Chicano Studies and minoring in translation and interpretation at the University of Texas at El Paso. She is on the Dean’s List and has earned the UTEP Academic Excellence Scholarship as an undergrad student. As a former Congressional intern at the office of Veronica Escobar, her interests lie in immigration and legal studies. Alondra is a first-generation college student, pursuing a future in law school through research and experience that explores her Mexican American identity. Through her work in campaigning and canvassing, she gained valuable experience in voter outreach. By being fluent in both English and Spanish, she dedicates her free time to volunteering at Border Workers United, conducting community workshops and informative presentations about immigration to the community. Relevant coursework includes Chicano Studies: Societal Issues, Cultural Diversity & Youth, Chicano Cinema, La Chicana, Latina/o Presence in the U.S., and courses in Spanish.

Claudia Garcia, Professor of Spanish, University of Nebraska Omaha; OLLAS

Dr. Claudia García teaches Spanish and Latin American literatures and cultures at the University of Nebraska Omaha. Her research interests include 20th & 21th Century Latin American literatures, Guatemalan women writers, representations of gender and social violence, Indigenous cultures and literatures, and Latinx authors writing in US Spanish. She has authored over 35 specialized articles and book chapters. Her most recent book publications include the monograph Normalización de la violación y la violencia de género en la novela guatemalteca (1930-1960) (2019), and the co-edited volumes Irreverente y desmesurada: Aurora Venturini frente a la crítica (2021), and Insomne pasado: Lecturas críticas de Latinoamérica colonial (2016).

Mariana X. Garcia, Student, University of Texas-El Paso

Mariana Garcia is a Junior at the University of Texas at El Paso who is seeking a degree in English & American Literature and Chicano Studies with a minor in Political Science. She plans to become a lawyer focused on Constitutional law, addressing systemic barriers faced by the Latinx—especially Mexican American—community. Beginning her educational journey in Chihuahua, Mexico, until the fourth grade, and then transitioning to the border city of El Paso, Texas, Mariana was able to construct a distinctive perspective on education from other first-generation Mexican Americans. One of her interests lies in the impact imposter syndrome has on the Latinx community, specifically in academic environments. Attending a predominantly Hispanic institution, Mariana has undergone the same challenges of identity and belonging in her education as her peers, yet her journey brings focus to how imposter syndrome can develop even within the same communities, adding depth to the topic.

Victor Garcia, Student, University of Texas-El Paso

Victor Garcia is a Mexican American engineering student at UTEP who embodies Edward Soja's concept of "Thirdspace" through his daily border crossing from Juárez to El Paso with his wife Alejandra. His academic journey reflects a complex negotiation of spaces—both physical and intellectual—having published in a peer-reviewed journal immediately after high school in 2002, before life circumstances temporarily redirected his path. Victor's professional background includes earning his Series 7 and 63 licenses, adding a unique financial dimension to his engineering mindset. This intersection of technical expertise and financial acumen informs his perspective on imposter syndrome, particularly how non-traditional students must constantly navigate between professional, academic, and cultural spaces. Victor's experience crossing the physical border daily serves as a powerful metaphor for the psychological boundaries non-traditional Latino/a students must traverse in academic settings. His analytical approach to understanding these spatial negotiations offers valuable insights into how institutional structures can better support students who exist within multiple worlds simultaneously.

 

Pablo García Gámez, Lecturer, Stony Brook University

Pablo García Gámez, born in Caracas, Venezuela, holds a Ph.D. in the Program in Latin American, Iberian and Latino Culture from The Graduate Center, CUNY. He is a playwright and instructor at Stony Brook University and York College. Among his articles published are: “Lorca, Pietri, Ramos Otero: Presentir, ver, sentir”, Los Bárbaros (2021); “Prólogo” Dos piezas teatrales, de Fernando Vieira, Centro de Estudios Sociales de América Latina (2021). For Conjunto, Revista de Casa de las Américas: “La dramaturgia hispana, cuarentena y visibilidad: afuera, adentro” (2021), and “Intercambio de saberes: teatro de calle y público hispano.” (2017). For LART, “Noche tan linda: Historia, travesti y cerro” (2016), and “Dramaturgia en el acuyá: entre el desdén y la autogestión.” (2014). Plays published: Blanco (2006), Las damas de Atenea and Rematado (2008); in 2017 his play Noche tan linda was published in Conjunto. In 2019 his Olvidadas is published in Teatro Latino: New plays from the United States; in the same year is published in the anthology Apacuana: Cuatro obras ganadoras 2015-2018. In 2022 Querer ser: Tres piezas queer was published by Hispanic/Latino Cultural Center, New York. Among his academic awards are: The IUPLR/Mellon Fellowship; The Graduate Center Dissertation Fellowship; The Emilia and Simon Lerner Memorial Tuition Award, Department of Classical and Modern Languages, The City College, New York.

Lilian Garcia-Roig, Distinguished Professor, Florida State University

Lilian Garcia-Roig is a Cuba born, Texas raised artist living in Tallahassee, Florida whose landscape paintings examine ideas of place, belonging, identity, and perceptual experience. She has shown extensively in many museums throughout the southeast including the Chopo Museum in Mexico City, Americas Society Gallery in NYC, the National Museum of Women in the Arts, and the Art Museum of the Americas. Her MFA is from the University of Pennsylvania and BFA is from Southern Methodist University. From 1991 to 2000 she was a tenured Associate Professor of Studio Art at UT-Austin and is now a Robert O. Lawton Distinguished Professor at Florida State University. Major awards include: Guggenheim, Blackwell Prize, Joan Mitchell Foundation Award, Mid-America Arts Alliance/NEA, State of Florida Individual Artist Fellowship, Kimbrough Award from the Dallas Museum of Art. Residencies include: Skowhegan, MacDowell, Joan Mitchell Center, Art Omi, Millay, Surf Point, the Ludwig Foundation in Havana, Cuba.

Giselle Gimenez Gayosso, Undergraduate Teaching Assistant, University of Texas-El Paso

Born and raised in Mexico City, Giselle Giménez Gayosso moved to El Paso to pursue a college education. She will graduate from the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) in December with a double major in linguistics and creative writing and a minor in the university's honors program. She is also a research and teaching assistant and the founder and president of The Linguistics Student Organization (LSO). As a fast-track student, Giselle has already started working towards a master’s in bilingualism and applied linguistics, which she will finish in Fall 2026. She intends to pursue a Fulbright teaching scholarship and become a language instructor to help people tackle linguistic barriers. Aside from language, Giselle is primarily interested in poetry, often using code-switching to reflect her experience navigating and intertwining two languages. As an immigrant herself, her work centers around migration, language, family, longing, and mental health.

Dalia Gudino Landeros, Graduate Student, University of Nevada, Reno

Dalia Gudino Landeros is a first-generation Mexican-American and current Master’s program student at the University of Nevada, Reno. Rooted in personal and community experience, their work explores the intersection of immigration, identity, and belonging. Dalia Gudino Landeros is dedicated to advancing equity and representation in anthropology and GRI (Gender, Race, and Identity) studies through the amplification of underrepresented voices and experiences of immigrants, mixed-status, and transnational families. Raised in a first generation and mixed-status family, Dalia Gudino Landeros draws inspiration from her family’s resilience and commitment to education and saliendo adelante.

 

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Mauricio Hernández Ramírez, MSc, University of Texas-El Paso

Mauricio Hernandez is currently a Graduate student in the MA in Latin American and Border Studies at UTEP. He holds a BA in Economics from Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico (UNAM), a MSc in International Administration and Global Governance from the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, and a MA in Public Administration and Public Policy from the Tecnologico de Monterrey, Mexico. He is also a professor at UNAM and Universidad Anahuac in Mexico, and he has held academic and professional stays in the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences of China, The Quality of Government Institute at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden, the Development Bank of Latin America (CAF) in Venezuela, and the University of California at Irvine in the United States.

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Lisa Jahn, Assistant Professor, Barnard College

Dr. Lisa Jahn (she/her) is an Assistant Professor of American Studies at Barnard College and a cultural anthropologist whose research combines ethnographic methods with feminist and critical social theory to explore racialization, gendered labor, care, coloniality, climate vulnerability and displacement. Her current research traces the systemic failures and exploitation of racialized care labor in New York City’s response to Puerto Ricans displaced by Hurricane María in 2017. The study centers a critique of the racialized violence within economies of care aimed at assisting populations displaced by environmental disasters, while simultaneously demonstrating how diasporic women create alternative modes of recovery through radical forms of care. This ongoing project reflects a broader research and teaching focus on issues related to Latinx/é studies, diaspora, transnational feminism, racism, and decolonial struggles. Prior to joining Barnard, Jahn was an adjunct professor at Brooklyn College, CUNY for seven years.

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Peter Kyriacou, Student, University of South Florida

Peter Kyriacou is an undergraduate student, studying Anthropology at the University of South Florida. His work falls within the subfield of economic anthropology and development studies, exploring how processes of global capital accumulation intersect with sociocultural factors. With a regional focus on the Caribbean, he identifies the region as "ground zero" for the processes of globalization that now encompass the entire world. He is currently working on his Honors Thesis, concerning the transfer of in-kind remittances to the Caribbean. In the past year, he conducted research on tourism dependency and democratic violence in the Dominican Republic, and he works as a research assistant at the USF Heritage Research Lab.

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Brenda Lara, Assistant Professor, San Diego State University

Dr. Brenda Selena Lara (she/they/ella) is an Assistant Professor at San Diego State University. She received her doctoral degree from UCLA’s Cesar Chavez Department of Chicana/o and Central American Studies with an emphasis in Gender Studies and Experimental Critical Theory. Born and raised in South Los Angeles, her upbringing influences her historical, theoretical, and literary research analyzing LGBTQ+ Latinxs’ lives, knowledge, and deaths. Brenda Lara’s first book project, "Latinx Hauntings," deconstructs the cycle of queer Latinx scholars’ untimely deaths and legacies in academia. She has been awarded the Inter-University Program for Latino Research Mellon Fellowship and currently serves as a board member for the Center for Black, Brown, and Queer Studies. Lara has published work in the award-winning collection "Monsters & Saints" (2024), Genre: Forms of Discourse and Culture, and Camino Real: Estudios de las Hispanidades Norteamericanas.

Jacqueline López

Jacqueline López is a PhD Graduate Researcher at the University of Nevada, Reno. She discusses the impact of stress on mental health and work performance. She emphasizes the importance of time management, setting realistic goals, and creating boundaries between work and personal life to manage stress. Jacqueline highlights the role of mindfulness practices, social support, and self-care in reducing stress. She also addresses the negative effects of unmanaged stress, such as burnout and physical health issues. Jacqueline recommends resources like Headspace, Calm, and the National Alliance on Mental Illness for stress management. Her work underscores the need for transparency with supervisors and seeking professional help when stress becomes overwhelming.

Paul López, Professor of Latinx Studies, California State University, Chico

I am a professor of Latinx studies and sociology at California State University, Chico. My research focuses on the social processes of migration, particularly Mexican labor migration to the United States. My current project examines the recruitment and long-term settlement of temporary guest workers, known as braceros, brought to the U.S. through the U.S.–Mexico Bracero Program. Over many years, I have collected oral histories from former braceros, and my findings suggest that the program—though designed to be temporary—often resulted in permanent settlement. These personal narratives reveal how migration extends beyond policy timelines and becomes a lasting social process. I have taught courses in Latinx Studies and Sociology for more than 30 years and continue to research and write about Mexican immigration, with a focus on the lived experiences of former guest workers.

Alberto López Pulido, Professor, University of San Diego / Chicano Park Museum and Cultural Center

Alberto López Pulido is the founding chair of the Department of Ethnic Studies and has been on the faculty at the University of San Diego since 2003. He began his postsecondary education at Southwestern College in Chula Vista and then transferred to the University of California, San Diego, where he received degrees in Sociology and Chicano Studies. He had a desire to explore postbaccalaureate studies in Ethnic and Chicano Studies that led him to apply and was accepted to the University of Notre Dame where he studied with Julian Samora as a student in the Mexican American Graduate Studies Program established in the 1970s. In 2003, El Profe Pulido was hired by the University of San Diego to establish the Department of Ethnic Studies at the University of San Diego. From the outset, Pulido’s vision was to honor the legacy and history of our local communities in learning and experiencing the strength and value of ethnic studies. He was inspired by many community and family voices who framed his intellectual and foundational epistemology that established his passion for knowledge and truth rooted in community and life experience. This led Pulido to align himself with several communities organizations and guides and none more important than the Chicano Park Steering Committee who serve as the stewards of Chicano Park in San Diego, California. He learned a great deal about community organizing through collective struggle and self-determination. This would guide and inspire him to direct and co-produce an award winning documentary on the history and value of lowriding as a cultural expression in the borderlands of San Diego and Tijuana. Soon after, he would be approached by the acquisition editor for History Press to write a book that would augment the history of lowrider culture in San Diego. In conjunction with the San Diego lowrider community and Digital Librarian Amanda Makula from Copley Library, the University of San Diego is now home to the only Digital Lowrider Archive in the world. El Profe Pulido continues his scholarly commitment to relevant education rooted in a community epistemology that guides his work as Director of the Turning Wheel Mobile Classroom Project. Turning Wheel provides a mobile space for supporting the urgent needs and challenges of our local communities. The Turning Wheel Project represents a partnership between the University of San Diego and the Chicano Park Museum and Cultural Center. Pulido serves as Vice-Chair of the museum’s advisory board. He continues his pedagogical work in linking contemplative studies with ethnic studies teaching and scholarship. In addition, he is currently at work on a history of the Logan Heights community from an ethnic studies perspective that honors the knowledge and voices of its past and current residents.

Julie Lucero

Julie E. Lucero MPH PhD joined the College of Health faculty in January 2022. Currently, she is an Associate Professor in the Department of Health and Kinesiology, College of Health, University of Utah. She also serves as the Associate Director at the Center for Research on Race, Health Justice and Public Policy and is the Deputy Director for the Mountain West Prevention Research Center. Her research is focused on health for all, inclusion, community-based participatory research, and workforce development. Dr. Lucero strives to achieve health equity by means of education, research, and policy development. Through the identification of social, commercial, and political determinants of health, community-academic partnerships can reduce the burden of poor health experienced by populations that are politically underrepresented and socially marginalized.

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Konane Martínez

Dr. Konane Martinez is an applied anthropologist with over 20 years working in the California/Mexico border who has developed and conducted communities. As faculty director of the National Latino Research Center Dr. Martinez has led numerous projects in the areas of health, education, environmental justice and civic engagement.  

Arilyn Martínez Cora, Dir. Latino Film Market INC; Student, City College

Arilyn Martínez Cora es emprendedora, educadora y cineasta puertorriqueña con más de una década de experiencia produciendo y dirigiendo proyectos en Puerto Rico y Estados Unidos. Es fundadora y director

Additional information

• Attendance type: In person