A national award-winning educator and Fulbright Scholar, Jose B. Gonzalez, Ph.D., was born in San Salvador, El Salvador and immigrated to New London, Connecticut at the age of eight. He is the author of the poetry collection, Toys Made of Rock, based on his personal voyage from a non-English speaker to a Professor of English. He has been a featured speaker at colleges, universities, and organizations throughout the country and has contributed critical and nonfiction essays to such journals as New England Quarterly and to National Public Radio. His work has been included in such journals as Callaloo, The Teacher’s Voice, Palabra, Acentos Review, and Colere, and anthologies including Theatre Under My Skin: Contemporary Salvadoran Poetry, Coloring Book, Nantucket: A Collection, and Latino Boom: An Anthology of U.S. Latino Literature, which he also co-edited with John S. Christie. He has presented his poetry at such places as the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art, the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian, and international literary festivals. He has received national and regional awards for his teaching, his efforts to improve the conditions of Latinos pursuing a college degree or a career in higher education, and for his poetry. He has served in multiple administrative and leadership roles, and is also the founder and editor of LatinoStories.com.

Education

• Ph.D. in English, University of Rhode Island
• Master of Arts in Teaching English, Brown University
• Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, Bryant University

Courses Taught

• Creative Writing
• Literature of Humanity and Conflict
• The Art of Effective Writing (Honors)
• Honors Literature
• Humanities in World Literature
• Composition and Speech
• Writing About Literature
• Latino Literature
• Latinos in Film

Selected Publications and Presentations:

• Toys Made of Rock. Tempe, AZ: Bilingual Review Press. 2015.
• “On a Field Trip to Florence Griswold” (poem). Lay Bare the Canvas: New England Poets on Art. Beatrice Lazarus, Editor. Providence: The Poetry Loft. 2014.
• “Scene with Dolores Del Rio,” and “Scene from Los Olvidados” (poems). Theatre Under My Skin: Contemporary Salvadoran Poetry. San Salvador: Kalina Press. 2014.
• 2014 Keynote Speaker. Hispanic Heritage Month. Rutgers University.
• 2014 Keynote Speaker. Hispanic Heritage Month. Fairfield University.
• 2014 Featured Poet. Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian, Washington, D.C.
• 2014 Featured Poet. Guadalupe Cultural Center. San Antonio, Texas.
• 2013 Commencement Speaker. New London High School Graduation.
• 2013 Featured Poet. Hartford Poetry Festival.
• 2013 Keynote Speaker. State of Connecticut Capitol Immigrant Day.
• “Hollow Shells Revisited” (poem). Paterson Literary Review. Issue #40/2012-2013.
• “I couldn’t for a teenaged bully’s death” (poem). Bullying: Replies Rebuttals, Confessions and Catharsis. Magdalena Gomez and Maria Luisa Arroyo, eds. New York: Skyhorse Publishing. 2012.
• “Toys Made of Rock,” “Lines Breaking,” and “Dark Cinderella,” (poems). Quercus Review: Without Camels: A Caravan of Latino Writing. Summer 2010.
• “At the Obituary Interview,” and “Dirtied Gauzes” (poems). Naugutuck River Review. Winter 2010.
• Hispanic Heritage Hypocrisy,” Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education” October 2009
• “After the Honduras-El Salvador Soccer War of 1969,” “Brown University Librarian Strike—1990,” and “i couldn’t for a teenaged bully’s death” (poems), Acentos Review, December 2008
• ”Fleeing from Work,” “Football for the First Time,” and “The Art of Flipping” (poems), Ocho, Number 15, Special Issue on Latino Poets, edited by Francisco Aragon, January 2008
• “Jesus Colon’s Truth-Seeking Disciple: An Interview with Martin Espada,” Latino Studies 2007, 5, (123-128)
• “Sociology 101: Essay on Illegal Immigration,” The Teacher’s Voice. Spring 2006, Volume 2, Number 1
• “Elvis in the Inner City,” Callaloo: A Journal of African Diaspora and Arts and Letters, Volume 29, Number 3, Summer 2006
• “In the Company of Books” and “The Thanksgiving of No Mas,” Palabra: A Journal of Hispanic/Latino Literary Art, August 2006
• Latino Boom: An Anthology of U.S. Latino Literature. New York: Longman, 2006. Includes original poems, “Autobrownography of a New England Latino,” “Caribbean Fresco,” and “Because No One Should Ask, ‘Chavez Who?’”
• “A Bilingual Conundrum.” All Things Considered, National Public Radio, October 6, 2005
• Entries in Encyclopedia of Ethnic American Literature, on Julia Alvarez, Junot Diaz, Martin Espada, Oscar Hijuelos, and Judith Ortiz Cofer, Greenwood Press
• “Stealing Shakespeare.” Coloring Book: An Eclectic Anthology of Fiction and Poetry by Multicultural Writers. Rattlecat Press, 2003
• “A Striped Basilisk Lecture” (poem). The Leaflet. Vol. 102, Number 2, Spring 2003
• “Harnessing the Power of the Spoken Word.” The Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education. 16 June 2003. Volume 13, number 18
• Poetry by the Finalists. Poet-of-the-Year Competition. 2002. New England Teachers of English. October 18, 2002
• “Book Review of Jose Can You See: Latinos On and Off Broadway.” MELUS: The Journalof the Society for the Study of the Multi-Ethnic Literature of the United States. Winter 2002
• “Lola’s Pupusa Stand” (poem). Colere: A Journal of Cultural Exploration. 2002
• “Nantucket Schools” (poem). Nantucket: A Collection. White Fish Press, 2001
• “Caribbean Fresco” (poem). Calabash. September, 2000
• “Book Review of Migrant Song.” College Literature. June, 1999
• “Breaking the Silence: Discussing Race and Ethnicity in the Classroom,” The Teaching Professor. May, 1998

Selected Media Appearances

• Syndicated National Show, American Latino TV
• National Public Radio, All Things Considered
• El Show de Analeh, Univision, Featured Guest Poet

Honors

• 2015 Identidad Latina Latino De Oro (Arts and Culture) Award
• 2014 CT Latino News Champion of Change
• 2013 Coast Guard Academy Alumni Association Distinguished Faculty Award
• 2012 Fulbright Scholar, Spain
• 2009 American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education Outstanding Latino Faculty of the Year
• 2006 New England Association of Teachers of English Poet of the Year
• 2003 National Association for Multicultural Education Faculty of the Year—State of Connecticut
• 2009 American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education Outstanding Latino Faculty of the Year
• 2006 New England Teachers of English Poet of the Year
• 2003 Higher Education Multicultural Faculty of the Year