Alyssa Guadalupe Cavazos, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Rhetoric, Composition, and Literacy Studies
Department of Writing and Language Studies
College of Liberal Arts
UT Rio Grande Valley
Teaching has impacted my life by helping me become a more reflective human being. Educational injustices in our world drive my desire to create fair and just pedagogical approaches that ensure all students, regardless of language background or any other marker of perceived difference, have the opportunity to achieve success and become advocates and agents of change in our communities. Teaching reaffirms my passion and belief in creating linguistically inclusive learning environments in writing and rhetoric classes with students, professional development workshops with colleagues, and at home as I teach my little girl, Alyxia, both Spanish and English.
I am originally from Hacienda El Barranquito, a small town located near Monterrey in Nuevo León, México. As a bilingual academic who learned English as a second language, my research centers on language difference in the teaching of writing, translingual writing, multilingualism across communities, border rhetorics, and Latina/os in higher education. Through my translingual pedagogy and research with multilingual academics and students from across academic disciplines, I desire to become a more effective teacher. Our collective lived experiences, languages, and theories as learners, teachers, and scholars impact how we learn and teach. My scholarship and pedagogical approaches inspire my desire to engage in conversations with my colleagues from across academic disciplines on how we can design linguistically inclusive projects and pedagogies. I see teaching as my primary role and responsibility. I do research, engage in service, and apply for grants for the educational benefit of students. For this reason, as an educator and scholar, I am conscious of how I attempt to link my teaching, research, and service in such a way that will lead to the greatest impact in our University and surrounding community.
See full bio at webapps.utrgv.edu/aa/dm/index.cfm?action=profile&user=alyssa.cavazos.
