Director & Associate Professor T. Mark Montoya – Ethnic Studies and Associate Dean for Curriculum & Student Affairs- College of Social & Behavioral Sciences

T. Mark Montoya, PhD is Director and Associate Professor of Ethnic Studies in the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences. A first-generation college student, Montoya attended New Mexico State University (NMSU), where he received a BA in History and a MA in Government. He moved to Arizona to pursue a PhD in Political Science at NAU, which he completed with Distinction in 2009. Montoya’s scholarship centers broadly on the US-Mexico borderlands, borderlands pedagogy, citizenship, Ethnic Studies, Latinx Studies, DACA, Hip Hop, and first-generation student experiences. At NAU, Montoya is most involved with the First-generation Learning Community, the Teaching Academy, and the Commission on Ethnic Diversity. He also serves as President-elect of the Association for Borderlands Studies, chair of the Northern Arizona Dream Fund, and is on the editorial board for the Journal of First-generation Student Success. His awards include the “Government Department Star” of the College of Arts and Sciences at NMSU (2020), the Victoria Foundation’s Outstanding Latinx Faculty Service/Teaching in Arizona Higher Education Award (2019), NAU Commencement Speaker for the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences (2016), NAU College of Social and Behavioral Sciences Teacher of the Year (2015), NAU Outstanding Advocate Award for First-Generation College Students (2013), and the NAU President’s Award for Ethnic Diversity (2012).