Álvaro Baquero-Pecino obtained a double degree in “Hispanic Philology” and “Literary Theory and Comparative Literature” from The University of Granada (Spain). He also earned a M.A. in Spanish from New Mexico State University, and received his Ph.D. from Georgetown University. His main research interests include Immigration, Violence, Crime Fiction, Psychoanalysis, Trauma Narratives, and Transatlantic Studies. He worked as an Assistant Professor of Spanish at the University of Alabama, where he taught Literature and Film Studies from both Spain and Latin America. He is a Board Member of the Film Studies Section of the Latin American Studies Association (LASA). As an Assistant professor in the WLL Department, he will broaden the Spanish program to include cinema studies and visual culture.