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About Me

(she/her/ella) I am a Public Affairs and Policy Doctoral Candidate at Portland State University. My dissertation currently examines how remittances and the food labor system shape civic participation and government responsiveness in the United States and Latin America.

My research agenda engages in fundamental questions about how the rise of free-market policies and globalization impact expressions of community, citizenship, and participation. As a daughter to farmworkers and sister of a deported veteran, my family's legacy in California and Mexico is the foundation of how I understand the construction of political rights across borders.

My journey as a scholar-activist begins in California's Central Valley, a primarily low-income and heavily dependent on agriculture and oil. I consider my hometown at the juncture of local needs and global demands that create obstacles at several crossroads—income, class, identity, gender, race, immigration status, food systems, and environment. My desire for public service begins here.

After completing my undergraduate course work at San Diego State University (SDSU), I moved to Texas and attained a Masters of Public Administration. During this time, I gained an interest in Mexico's public finance system through several research projects I worked on as a graduate student. My work eventually led to a fellowship at SDSU's Institute of Public and Urban Affairs and to my first academic publication. Today, I have presented several papers at various conferences, and in 2018 I was elected as one of the American Society for Public Administration's International Young Scholars.

While in Texas, I worked in a local government as a financial analyst. Under great mentorship, I learned the inner working of public finance including, budgeting, finance, debt management, and managed an investment portfolio.

After these foundational learning experiences, I moved to Portland, Oregon to pursue a Ph.D. in Public Affairs and Policy at Portland State University (PSU). In Oregon, I have served on a range of local councils, commissions, and community boards. My work at a local PSU Center has supported numerous projects that range from hosting the first-ever Latinx Institute for Public Service to number crunching for various public finance projects.

What has felt true to me is merging the academic world with community and advocacy. During the Covid-19 pandemic, I have felt the urge to use my research skills and lived experience to help facilitate the Oregon Covid-19 Farmworker Study.

I believe storytelling is at the center of enacting change. At California's Institute for Rural Studies, I have worked on a podcast story focused on how historical exclusions of the National Labor Relations Act complicate retirement for farmworkers.

I also co-founded Desolate, the first-ever deported veteran zine founded to capture the stories of immigrant veterans. Today those Zine efforts have culminated into a strong immigrant coalition rallying behind the Leave No One Behind Mural Project urging action from the Biden-Harris and Congress to enact ethical immigration reform.

I have taught a range of political science and policy courses at Portland State University and San Diego State University.

Ultimately, I aspire to integrate my research skills with community outreach, advocacy, and storytelling to inform today's governance demands.