Vanessa R. González is a lecturer in the Department of Writing Studies at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities. She teaches in the First-Year Writing program and the Department of Chicano and Latino Studies. She previously taught at local community colleges and universities, as well as at Salem State University in Massachusetts. As an assistant professor of English at Salem State, Vanessa served as the coordinator of Creative Writing, had oversight for the Writers’ Series program, and was the faculty advisor for Soundings East literary magazine. Formerly, she managed programs and events at The Loft Literary Center in Minneapolis and worked in the Hedgeman Center for Student Diversity Initiatives at Hamline University. Vanessa is the author of several books for young readers with Capstone Press, including Wishing on a Star with Estrella, created as part of the Nuestras Voces series for the Smithsonian Museum of the American Latino. She is currently co-editing an anthology of nonfiction featuring Chicanx/Latine writers with Midwestern roots or ties. She co-coordinates the WRIT 1301 cohort of College in the Schools.