Expertise

Afro-Latinx and Latinx Studies, Caribbean Studies, Border Studies, Afro-Diasporic Spirituality

Biography

I was born and raised in Puerto Rico, and first came to the Philadelphia area to earn my bachelor's degree from Haverford College. I then moved to Massachusetts and received my Ph.D. in Romance Languages and Literatures from Harvard University. Before coming to Temple, I was an Assistant Professor of Spanish at Colby College.

My current book project, Channeling Knowledges: Afro-Diasporic Waters in Latinx and Caribbean Worlds, centers the multi-directional flows of water, migration, gender, race, and spirituality in Latinx and Caribbean spheres.

Selected Publications

Public Scholarship

Peer-Reviewed Articles

  • 2021: “‘Por el mar que nos une: boat people’sLiving Waters” in Chicana/Latina Studies Journal, Spring 2021, pp. 28-59
  • 2018: “Por amor en el caserío: Caribbeanizing West Side Story” in Latino Studies, Volume 16 Number 2, pp. 213-229.

Peer-Reviewed Book Chapters

  • 2018: “Rippling Borders in Latina Literature” in The Image of the River in Latin/o American Literature edited by Elizabeth Rivero and Jeanie Murphy, Lexington Books, pp. 95-115.
  • 2015: “Transformative Currents: An Exploration of the Sea and Identity in the Works of Angie Cruz and Nelly Rosario” in Negotiating Latinidades, Understanding Identities Within Spaceedited by Kathryn Quinn-Sánchez, Cambridge Scholars Press, pp. 9-29.

Courses Taught

Undergraduate and Graduate Courses

  • 2002- Hispanic Readings 
  • 3001- Advanced Spanish Composition and Conversation 
  • 3096- Advanced Analysis and Writing 
  • 3142- Puerto Rican Readings 
  • 4133- Hispanic Women’s Writing 
  • 4152/5152- Latinx Studies 
  • 8147- Graduate Seminar in Latinx Studies