New Faculty: Rebeca L. Hey-Colón

Rebeca L. Hey-Colón

Associate Professor, Literatures in English and Latina/o Studies

Academic focus: 

Afro-Latinx studies, Latinx studies, Caribbean studies

Current research project: 

My first book, “Channeling Knowledges: Water and Afro-Diasporic Spirits in Latinx and Caribbean Worlds” was published in 2023 by the University of Texas Press. I am now developing a new project centered on loss in Afro-Latinx, Latinx and Caribbean cultural production.

Previous positions:

• Assistant Professor, Department of Spanish and Portuguese, Temple University, 2018-2024
• Visiting Faculty Fellow, Suzy Newhouse Center for the Humanities, Wellesley College, 2022-2023
• Carlos E. Castañeda Postdoctoral Fellow, Center for Mexican American Studies, University of Texas at Austin, 2017-2018
• Assistant Professor, Department of Spanish, Colby College, 2015-2018
• Lecturer, Committee on Degrees in History and Literature, Harvard University 2014-2015

Academic background: 

• Ph.D., Romance languages and literatures, Harvard University, 2014
• M.A., Romance languages and literatures, Harvard University, 2006
• B.A., Comparative literature, Haverford College, 2005

Last book read: 

“Patternmaster” by Octavia Butler

In your own time/when not working: 

I enjoy visiting friends and family, taking walks and listening to podcasts and audiobooks.

Courses you’re most looking forward to teaching: 

I’m excited to design new courses in Afro-Latinx, Latinx and Caribbean studies for both the Department of Literatures in English and the Latina/o Studies Program, a process I will begin in the fall with my class, Diasporas, Disasters, and Dissent, which offers students a comprehensive view of Puerto Rican studies that is inclusive of both island and mainland experiences. 

What most excites you about Cornell: 

Cornell’s commitment to sustaining and growing its Latina/o Studies program, the institution’s vibrant intellectual life and interdisciplinary communities, and never being too far from the sound of water.