Cristina Herrera joins Portland State as professor and new director of Chicano/Latino Studies after 14 years at California State University, Fresno. There, she served as chair of the Department of Chicano and Latin American studies, faculty advisor for Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlán (MEChA), member of the Academic Senate and faculty rights representative for the union.
"Everyone I’ve met ... has been incredibly kind, welcoming, and supportive," she says. "I can’t wait to get to work."
Herrera studies contemporary Chicana/Latina literature, most recently focusing on Chicana/Latina young adult (YA) literature. In her most recent book, "ChicaNerds in Chicana Young Adult Literature: Brown and Nerdy," she examines the reclamation and powerful acceptance of one's nerdy Chicana self. "ChicaNerds," as she calls them, unite their burgeoning sociopolitical consciousness as young nonwhite girls with their "nerdy" traits of bookishness, math intelligence, poetic talents and love of learning.
What makes this work meaningful to you?
This work is meaningful because I see Chicana literature as a mirror that I never had growing up, and students have told me too many times that my classes are the first where they’ve read a poem, short story, or a novel that validates their experiences. Growing up, I was an avid reader, and because we couldn’t afford to buy too many books, my twin sister and I used the library and read The Sweet Valley Twins series, Ramona the Pest, books like that. As much as we loved them, they had little to do with what our lives were like: as the youngest children, as daughters, as second-generation Chicanas who spoke Spanish with their parents, as young girls who were often teased, bullied, and asked, “what are you?” by our classmates. So I study this young adult literature because it beautifully displays the pains of being a Chicana teenager in a system that doesn’t want to see Chicanitas as learners, as thinkers, as feminists, as fully autonomous human beings. I also want us to reclaim “nerds” beyond the narrow frame we see in popular culture. Chicanas can be nerds, and I think this is powerful, awesome, and liberating.
What drew you to PSU and in particular, the School of Gender, Race and Nations?
So many things! The more I read about PSU, the more it reminded me so much of Fresno State and the CSU system in that it attracts a large number of first-generation students. I was especially interested in SGRN’s cluster hire focus on activism and collaboration, a genuine commitment to anti-racist, decolonial pedagogy and research. I was excited about the possibility of growing CHLA within an institution like PSU that recognizes that these fields need to be supported. Maybe it’s because I’m an identical twin, but I love collaborating and working with others, so I’m especially drawn to this aspect of it. When I was a department chair at my previous institution, one of my favorite parts of the job was working with other chairs in the college to cross-list courses, co-sponsor events, and recruit students. So I can’t wait to work with my SGRN colleagues on courses, projects, and events.
What’s a course you’re particularly excited to teach?
Definitely Chicana/Latina Experience and Survey of Chicano Literature! I also can’t wait to work on proposing new courses like Chicanx families, Latinx literature for youth, and possibly Latinx adolescent cultures.
What’s one thing you hope students who take a class with you will come away with?
I hope students leave my classes knowing that they come from communities with rich stories, histories, knowledge, and experiences. I tell my students that our communities have always created art and knowledge, even if they were erased in the K-12 curriculum. Chicanx/Latinx Studies is about critically honoring and centering our lives and histories to unpack, question, challenge, and undo systems that have tried burying us.
What are you most looking forward to doing in your first year at PSU?
I’m really looking forward to first getting to know my colleagues in CHLA, including longtime adjunct faculty who have been the backbone of the program. It’s important that they see me as someone they can talk to and trust. As a director, my priority will always be to advocate for the program, support my colleagues, and mentor my two fantastic tenure-track colleagues as they move toward tenure. Beyond mentoring and working with my colleagues, I look forward to establishing connections within the College and SGRN, submitting course proposals to strengthen the curriculum, and working with students. I’ve already made some connections with folks at La Casa Latina, and I hope to work with them this coming year on programming for students. I see my first year as being mainly about forging alliances, creating a network of collaboration, and developing courses, all while supporting my program colleagues.
Where do you see the future of Chicano/Latino Studies at PSU heading?
I’m really excited for the future of Chicano/Latino Studies. My two tenure-track colleagues, Dr. Melissa Patiño-Vega and Dr. Martín Alberto Gonzalez are phenomenal, and I know they’ll attract students to our courses and bring energy to the program. We’ve already joked with each other that we’re a small but mighty group, “somos pocos pero poderosos,” and I look forward to growing the program into a department that offers a major in addition to the minor and certificate. To get to department status, we’ll need more faculty hires, but this also means working with existing faculty across the campus who have expertise in Chicanx/Latinx communities, literature, art, history, and philosophy, for example. The Pacific Northwest’s Latinx population is growing, and I really believe that Chicanx/Latinx Studies can be a home for students who want to learn about and serve their communities.