Ruth M. López

Ruth M. López, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor in Educational Leadership and Policy (EDLP) in the Department of Educational Policy Studies and Practice (EPSP) at the University of Arizona College of Education. Dr. López serves as unit and PhD director of EDLP. Dr. López is a proud Tejana and grew up in Dallas, Texas. She earned B.A.s in Mexican American Studies and Spanish at The University of Texas at Austin, and a Ph.D. in Educational Foundations, Policy, and Practice at the University of Colorado Boulder in 2015. She was previously a Senior Research Associate at the Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University (2013-2016), and an Assistant Professor in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies (K-12 Leadership) at the University of Houston (2016-2023). Her practitioner experiences span K-12 and higher education and prior to beginning her Ph.D. program, she was a college outreach counselor in Houston Independent School District schools through the Division of Diversity and Community Engagement at UT-Austin (2004-2008), and later a program coordinator of the Colorado Diversity Initiative at CU-Boulder (2008-2012), which served underrepresented undergraduate and PhD students in STEM. Her primary research examines the intersections of education and immigration policies, college access for Latine/x and undocumented students, and the experiences of Latinas at Hispanic-Serving Institutions. Dr. López is proud of her multiple identities as the daughter of immigrants from El Salvador and Mexico, first-generation college student/graduate, and mother scholar to name a few—these inform her approach as a scholar, faculty, and engaged community member. 

Selected Publications

López, R. M., Carales, V. D., Farmer, M. J., & Hocking, C. (2025). Examining the educational experiences of Latina early college high school students through a community cultural wealth framework. The Urban Review. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11256-025-00725-z 

López, R. M. (2024) Braiding together Critical Race Feminista participatory action research: Conceptual and methodological considerations. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/09518398.2024.2318306 

López, R.M. & Giraldo-Santiago, N. (2023). A critical examination of policies and practices impacting the education of unaccompanied immigrant children in the United States. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 31. https://doi.org/10.14507/epaa.31.7386  [AR: 12%, IF: .947][1]

López, R.M., Honey, M.L., Rendon, S., & Pérez-Gill, S. (2022). The uncertain path towards college: How intersectionality shaped the experiences of Latinas enrolled at a Hispanic-serving institution. AERA Open. https://doi.org/10.1177/23328584221101552 [AR: 12%, IF: 2.299]

López, R.M., Honey, M.L., Pacheco, H.S., & Valdez, E.C. (2021). Creando comunidad: Experiences of Latina faculty and staff mentors at a Hispanic serving institution. NASPA Journal About Women and Gender in Higher Education, 14(1), 100-120. https://doi.org/10.1080/26379112.2021.1888746[AR: 10%, IF: .86]

Carales, V.D. & López, R.M. (2020). Challenging deficit views by using strength-based perspectives to support Latinx community college students. New Directions for Community Colleges, Emerging Issues for Latinx Students in Community Colleges, 2020(190), 103-113. https://doi.org/10.1002/cc.20390

López, R.M. (2020). Discursive de/humanizing: A multimodal critical discourse analysis of television news representations of undocumented youth. Education Policy Analysis Archive, 28(47), n47. https://doi.org/10.14507/epaa.28.4972 [AR: 12%, IF: .947]

López, R.M., Valdez, E.C., Pacheco, H.S., Honey, M.L., & Jones, R. (2020). Bridging silos in higher education: Using Chicana feminist participatory action research to honor and support Latina resilience. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, 33(8), 872-886. https://doi.org/10.1080/09518398.2020.1735566 [AR: 28%, IF: 1.86]