I’ve always been interested in how we tell stories to make sense of the world around us, and how we use stories to define ourselves and others. Language and stories fascinate me – the language we choose to use to create stories, who tells stories, who gets left out, who is heard. I’m passionate about amplifying and centering voices that have historically been unheard. And I believe in our ability to rewrite harmful stories and use storytelling to heal ourselves and our communities. So much of my work — be it community and academic research, teaching and mentoring, advocating for language access, or facilitating dialogues and strategic planning discussions — has foundations within these ideas.

As a researcher, educator, and nonprofit leader, I am passionate about bridge-building and creating opportunities for understanding between groups, and a commitment to equity and social justice has guided much of my work. Most of my professional background has been spent in higher education and nonprofit settings focusing on gender and racial justice and providing concrete resources, services, and opportunities for communities who have been historically excluded and disadvantaged: women (especially women of color), BIPOC/BIWOC folks like myself, immigrant and refugee communities, first-generation students, and others, people who find their identities in the intersections and in-betweens.

I have several years of experience working, advocating, and conducting research with refugees, asylum seekers, and immigrants in Colorado, Wyoming, Germany, and Massachusetts. I joined the MAP Network (formerly Refugees Welcome!) team in 2017 and served as the executive director from 2018-2022, supporting the organization's work to strengthen migrant service provision and service provider networks in the Boston area. I have long been involved with women’s organizations and served as the program coordinator for the Center for Women in Politics and Public Policy from 2017-2021, playing a key role in the center’s internship program, Distinguished Public Service Fellows Program, and New England Women’s Policy Initiative. Currently, I am the program manager for interpreting and translation services at Found in Translation, an amazing organization that provides a free medical interpreter training program for low-income, bi/multilingual women and simultaneously helps fight linguistic, racial, and gender disparities in healthcare and other fields. I also continue to be engaged in initiatives and projects to promote access to and equity and inclusion within higher education, advance and promote women's leadership, develop and promote restorative practices and restorative justice efforts, and facilitate dialogue in various settings.

I am proud to have been a first-generation student and professor and be part of the small but growing percentage of Latinas in academia. I have taught high school and college level courses in gender and women’s studies, racial and ethnic studies, migration studies, general social studies and global studies topics, and professional development. I earned my PhD (2024) from the Department of Conflict Resolution, Human Security, and Global Governance in UMass Boston’s McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies. I earned my MA in Global Governance and Human Security (2019) from UMass Boston and an MA in International Studies with a graduate minor in Women’s and Gender Studies from the University of Wyoming (2017). I have a BA in International Affairs with a minor in anthropology and a BA in English, both from the University of Northern Colorado (2015).