For 20 years, Dr. Téllez has been committed to exploring shared human experiences and advancing social justice. An interdisciplinary scholar trained in sociology, Chicana/o studies, community studies and education, her work seeks to uncover stories of identity, transnational community formation, gendered migration, resistance, and Chicana mothering.
Dr. Téllez has published in several book anthologies, and in journals such as Gender & Society, Feminist Formations, Aztlán, and Chicana/Latina Studies; and in online outlets such as The Feminist Wire and Truth Out. She also uses visual media to engage and share these stories; her last video 'Workers on the Rise' (2012) documents labor struggles in Maricopa county, AZ. 
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A former board member of the Phoenix based Arizona Workers Rights Center and the National Association of Chicana/o Studies, currently Dr. Téllez is a founding member of the Arizona Ethnic Studies Network, the Entre Nosotr@s collective and the Chicana M(other)work Collective.  She is on the editorial review board for Chicana/Latina Studies: The Journal of Mujeres Activas en Letras y Cambio Social and on the board of directors for the Southwest Folklife Alliance in Tucson, AZ.

​In 2004-2005, she was a dissertation fellow in the department of Chicana/o Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara. For the 2007-2008 academic year she was a Chancellor’s Postdoctoral Fellow in the Latina/o Studies Program at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. Dr. Téllez is a former Mellon Fellow for the Future of Minority Studies (FMS) Research Project at Cornell University and a current Tucson Public Voices Fellow for the OpEd Project. Dr. Téllez taught at Arizona State University for nine years, at Northern Arizona University for two years, and is currently an Assistant Professor in the Mexican American Studies Department at the University of Arizona.

Curriculum Vitae

Education
Ph.D., Education, Emphasis in Critical Community Studies, Claremont Graduate University, 2005.
Master of Arts, Sociology and Education, Teachers College, Columbia University, 2000.
Bachelor of Arts, Sociology with specialization in Chicana/o Studies, UCLA, 1995.

Selected Academic Awards, Honors, Fellowships
  • Tucson Public Voices Fellowship (2017-2018)
  • Beyond Boundaries, Project Director. Arizona Humanities Mini-Grant. (2016)
  • Dr. Manuel Servin Faculty Award: Achievement in research, mentorship of Latino students, leadership at ASU/the community, and community service/involvement, CLSFA, Arizona State University (2014)
  • Chancellor’s Postdoctoral Fellowship, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign (2007-2008)
  • Mellon Fellow: Future of Minority Studies (FMS) Research Project, Cornell University (Summer 2007)
  • Chicana Dissertation Fellowship, UCSB (2004-2005)

Selected Academic Presentations   
  • Nuevas direcciones en investigación migratoria ante la era Trump: Dreamers y jovenes de retorno a México. Seminario Niñez Migrante. Colegio de Sonora. Hermosillo, MX. (November 30, 2017)
  • Beyond the Wall: Liberating Stories and Creative Resistance. University of Minnesota. Minneapolis, MN. (February 2, 2017)
  • Diversity as Backlash: Connecting Struggles from the "Frontlines" in a Time of Neoliberal Rule. American Studies Association. Denver, CO. (November 17, 2016).
  • Scholar-Activism and the emerging Chicana M(other)work Collective. UCLA-Research Advisory Committee on Critical Race Theory. Los Angeles, CA. (April 22, 2016)
  • Arizona Artivism: Feminist Collectives and Radical Interventions in Border Discourse. Panelist. Tenth Biennial Feminisms and Rhetorics Conference. Tempe, AZ. (October 31, 2015)
  • Mothers of Color in Academia: A Performative Dialogue and Workshop. Discussant. American Studies Association Conference. Los Angeles, CA. (November 6, 2014)
  • “Dehumanizing Productions and Corporeal Vulnerabilities: Critical Interventions for Revisioning the Social Imaginary in the Arizona Context and Beyond,” Panelist. Critical Ethnic Studies Conference. Chicago, IL. (September 21, 2013).  
  • “Critical Ethnic Studies in Arizona,” Panelist. Fanaticism and the Abolition-Democracy: Critical Theory in the Spirit of Joel Olson Conference. Flagstaff, AZ. (January 25, 2013).
  • “Decolonizing the Spiritualities of Chicana, Latina, and Indigenous Women,” Panelist. National Women’s Studies Association (NWSA), Oakland, CA. (November 9, 2012).
  • “Gender, Migration and Chicana Feminism,” Invited Panelist on Feminism: The Many Faces of the Movement; Womanity Summit, Tempe, AZ. (April 6 2012).
  • “Transfronteriza: Constructing Gender Identities and Rights at the U.S/Mexico Border,” Invited Speaker, (Hosted by Latin American Studies, Sociology, Gender and Women Studies), Cal State Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA. (March 5, 2012).
  • “Challenges in migration between Mexico and the United States,” International Workshop for the Right to Migrate Free from Violence, RAFTO Foundation, Saltillo, Coahuila, Mexico (June 16, 2011).
  • “Transfronteriza: Constructing Gender Identities and Rights at the U.S/Mexico Border,” Institut des Ameriques: Frontieres/Transfrontieres dans les Ameriques, Invited Keynote Address, (2nd Annual Conference of Border Issues in the Americas); University of Nantes, Nantes, France (April 22, 2011).
  • “A Critical Inquiry into the Borderlands: Gender, Militarization, and Community Building at the U.S/Mexico Border,” Three-day Graduate Seminar, Universidad de Castilla La Mancha, Ciudad Real, Spain (March 9- 11, 2010).

Selected Public Talks
  • Q & A with Prof. Noam Chomsky on Social Movements and Resistance. University of Arizona. Tucson, AZ. (February 23, 2017).
  • Liberating Stories: Border Disruptions and Creative Resistance. Organized by the Latina/o Studies Working Group and the Melbern G. Glasscock Center for Humanities Research. Texas A & M University. College Station, TX. (March 23, 2016)
  • Violence Against Women, Guest Lecture. National Organization for Women, West Valley Chapter. Surprise, AZ​ (February 27, 2015)
  • Immigration, Panelist with Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI), Black Life Matters Conference. Tucson, AZ. (January 16, 2015)
  • "Gender and International Development," Guest Lecture. National Organization for Women, West Valley Chapter. Surprise, AZ. (April 2, 2014 )
  • Black Power Mixtape film screening: Guest Scholar. Arizona Humanities Council. Phoenix, AZ. (February 18, 2014)
  • "Decolonization as a Catalyst for Self-Determination," Keynote Address; 9th Annual MEChA Youth Conference, ASU, Tempe, AZ. (February 7, 2014).
  • “Chunky: The Making of a Social Activist,” Panelist and project advisor; film screening and panel discussion. Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ. (October 1, 2012).       
  • “Education: A Culture of Resistance,” Keynote Address, ASU 10th Annual Chicano/a Graduation, Phoenix, AZ. (May 5, 2012).
  •  “Birthing Along the Border,” Expert Panelist, Premiere of film Catching Babies (film by Barni Qassim).  Phoenix, AZ. (November 28, 2011).
  • “Realidades de las Mujeres Migrantes,” Kino Border Initiative; Universidad Pedagogica de Nogales, Nogales, Mexico (September 7, 2011).
  • “How We Got Here: Historical Roots of SB1070,” Plenary Lecture featuring Dr. Cornell West, Phoenix, AZ. (October 2, 2010).
  • Keynote Address; 5th Annual MEChA Youth Conference, ASU, Tempe, AZ. (April 24, 2010).
  • Keynote Address; 39th Annual Chicano Latina Graduation, San Diego City College. San Diego, CA. (May 16, 2009).
  • “Gender, Community Formation, and Transformation at the Border: Maclovio Rojas,” Plenary Speaker, Shephard Symposium on Social Justice, Laramie, WY. (March 25, 2008).
  • “Weaving Generations: Chicana Feminism and Activism as a Transformational Politic,” Chicana Caucus Plenary, National Association of Chicana/Chicano Studies, San Jose, CA. (April 7, 2007).
  • “Communities of Struggle,” International Women’s Day Conference, Southwestern College, Chula Vista, CA. (March 5, 2005).
  • "Globalization, Urban Planning, and Informal Urban Development in Tijuana:  The Case of Maclovio Rojas,” in_Site05, Dialogue 6, Cultural Center of Tijuana (CECUT), Tijuana, Baja CA. (November 21, 2004).

Courses Taught
  • Gender and the Borderlands
  • Race and Ethnic Relations
  • Gender, Migration and Human Rights
  • Women in Global Context
  • U.S./Mexico Border in Comparative Perspective
  • Chican@/Latin@ Studies
  • Chicana Feminisms
  • Chican@/Latin@ film
  • Women and Society


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