Ferialab Biosafety Laboratory

Dr. Joy Esquierdo

Vice Provost for Bilingual Integration

joy.esquierdo@utrgv.edu

Dr. Joy Esquierdo

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Dr. Joy Esquierdo
Vice Provost for Bilingual Integration
Bilingual Integration
ESSBL 4.101E
Email: joy.esquierdo@utrgv.edu

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Viridiana Zúñiga

Director of the Translation & Interpreting Office

viridiana.zuniga02@utrgv.edu

Viridiana Zúñiga

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Viridiana Zúñiga
Director of the Translation & Interpreting Office
Office for Bilingual Integration
BLHS 2.418
Email: viridiana.zuniga02@utrgv.edu

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Viridiana Zúñiga Pelayo is a translator and interpreter. Her career began with interpreting for WIRED magazine, and she has since provided services during socially impactful events such as the aftermath of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico, for people in situations of human mobility, and for in-patients, out-patients, the CDC, and medical teams throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, her service includes interpreting in psychiatric units, emergency rooms, DNA genetic testing, prisons, jails, as well as at federal and state court hearings and for non-profit organizations. Viridiana founded a translation business, serving clients such as the LRGV malls, maquiladoras, businesses expanding into the U.S., the Melinda Gates Foundation, and numerous non-profits. She is actively involved in community service and organizations like World Central Kitchen and FemCity, an organization for businesswomen. Viri belongs to the Oregon Society of Translators and Interpreters through a scholarship.

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Dr. Christian E. Zúñiga

Director of the Center for Bilingual Studies

christian.zuniga@utrgv.edu

Dr. Christian E. Zúñiga

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Dr. Christian E. Zúñiga
Director of the Center for Bilingual Studies
Center for Bilingual Integration
EEDUC 2.630
Email: christian.zuniga@utrgv.edu

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Dr. Zúñiga is an Associate Professor in Bilingual & Literacy Studies. She is originally from the Rio Grande Valley where she was also a bilingual elementary teacher. Her research interests explore the language ideologies of bilingual, borderland communities and their impact on local language policy, classroom pedagogy and bilingual teacher education. Her work has been published in notable journals like the Bilingual Research Journal and Language & Education. Recently, she and her colleagues were awarded a grant from the Spencer Foundation.

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Dr. George Díaz

Director of the Center for Mexican American Studies

george.diaz@utrgv.edu

Dr. George Díaz

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Dr. George Díaz
Director of the Center for Mexican American Studies
Center for Mexican American Studies Center for Mexican American Studies
Email: george.diaz@utrgv.edu

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George T. Díaz is the Director of the Center for Mexican American Studies at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley and an Associate Professor of History.  His award-winning book, Border Contraband: A History of Smuggling across the Rio Grande (University of Texas Press, 2015), is a social history of smuggling in the borderlands.  Díaz is co-editor of the collection Border Policing: A History of Enforcement and Evasion in North America (University of Texas Press, 2020).  His current book project, Mañana Land: Life and Death in a Mexican Prison in Texas, examines everyday life on Texas prison farms and how ethnic Mexican prisoners utilized their cultural practices as a means of resilience and resistance.  Dr. Díaz’s research is informed by investigations in Mexican and U.S. archives, as well as a lifetime of living on the border.   

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Gina Gwen Palacios

Associate Director, Center for Mexican American Studies

gina.palacios@utrgv.edu

Gina Gwen Palacios

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Gina Gwen Palacios
Associate Director, Center for Mexican American Studies
Center for Mexican American Studies Center for Mexican American Studies
Email: gina.palacios@utrgv.edu

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Palacios was born in Taft, Texas. She was just awarded tenure as an Associate Professor of Painting/Drawing.  Palacios was previously the Associate Director for the School of Art & Design (2021–24).

Her research draws on her family history and Mexican American identity, and uses traditional and non-traditional materials, including paint, cardboard, cotton, and sandpaper, to highlight the often underrepresented geographic and cultural narrative of South Texas.

   

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Dr. Dania López García

Director for B3 Curriculum and Professional Development, Associate Professor of Hispanic Linguistics

(956) 882-6503

dania.lopezgarcia@utrgv.edu

Dr. Dania López García

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Dr. Dania López García
Director for B3 Curriculum and Professional Development, Associate Professor of Hispanic Linguistics
Office for Bilingual Integration
BMAIN 1.512
Email: dania.lopezgarcia@utrgv.edu
Phone: (956) 882-6503

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She holds a PhD in Spanish from Stanford University. She is currently an Associate Professor in the Spanish Department. She was the Interim Executive Director of the UTRGV B3 Institute. Her area of research focuses on Heritage languages and ideologies of language. Her latest publication is a co-authored chapter titled, "The B3 Scholar Seal at UTRGV: Designing & Implementing an Alternative to the SoBL in South Texas."

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Dr. Katie Christoffersen

Director for B3 Scholarship and Student Connection, Associate Professor of Applied Linguistics

(956) 665-8102

Dr. Teresa Feria Arroyo

Associate Dean for Faculty Success & UT System Distinguished Teaching Professor

(956) 665-7322

teresa.feriaarroyo@utrgv.edu

Dr. Teresa Feria Arroyo

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Dr. Teresa Feria Arroyo
Associate Dean for Faculty Success & UT System Distinguished Teaching Professor
College of Sciences
ESCNE 4.635
Email: teresa.feriaarroyo@utrgv.edu
Phone: (956) 665-7322

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Dr. Teresa Patricia (Paty) Feria is a full Professor in the Biology Department at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV). She serves as Associate Dean for Faculty Success at the College of Sciences (COS) and as a UTRGV Provost Fellow and Office for Sustainability Fellow. She has mentored high school, undergraduate, and graduate students, and new faculty at UTRGV. To create a supportive community, she created a program at UTRGV called “Juntos al Exito” - together, we succeeded – where a panel of faculty/administrators and students share their successful testimonials. Topics included a sense of belonging, family culture, education, student mentoring, and more. Her inclusive and culturally responsive mentoring strategies and activities include icebreakers, self-reflections, creating support networks, and community engagement activities. Dr. Feria received the Provost’s International Studies Award (2011) and the Excellence in Teaching Award from the College of Science and Mathematics (2012). She received a USDA Kika de la Garza Science Fellowship and is a member of Mexico’s National Researchers System (Sistema Nacional de Investigadores). In 2018, Dr. Feria received the Outstanding International Faculty Female at UTRGV Excellence Award in Community Engagement at the College and University levels and the Fred W. and Frances H. Rusteberg Fellowship. She was Chair of the Women’s Faculty Network at UTRGV from 2018-2019. In 2022, Dr. Feria co-founded the Women in Science Network at COS. She received the prestigious UT System Regent’s Outstanding Teaching Award in 2020.

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