Vanessa Fonseca-Chávez’s work focuses on colonialism and the narratives of southwestern U.S. communities.

An expert in Latina/o cultural studies and Chicano/a literature, Fonseca-Chávez co-directs the Following the Manito Trail project, which looks at the Hispanic New Mexican diaspora from the mid-19th century to the present. 

Fonseca Chávez is an assistant professor of English. She also teaches courses on film in the American Southwest, Indigenous literature, and American ethnic literature.

Fonseca-Chávez is the co-editor of Spanish Perspectives on Chicano Literature and Cultural Essays and Querencia: Reflections on the New Mexico Homeland.