Biographical Sketch

Dr. Rodriguez is an Associate Professor at the Department of Chicano and Latino Studies at California State University, Long Beach. His area of expertise is the racialization of Latino identity and its impact on political behavior. His most recent research was on Chicano and Puerto Rican radical politics in Los Angeles that appeared in the book "Latino Social Movements" by Routledge. He is a national consultant, and trainer on diversity, and writes and speaks on Latino and diversity issues. His journalistic articles have appeared in English and Spanish in the Orange County Register, Politico Magazine, Los Angeles Times, Union Hispana, Deslindes, from Colombia, Hispanic Magazine, and the weekly Claridad from San Juan, Puerto Rico.

He was born in Santurce, Puerto Rico. In Puerto Rico he was actively involved in leadership positions within the pro-independence and labor movements. He received a B.A. in History at the University of Puerto Rico in Rio Piedras and received a master and a doctorate in philosophy in Comparative Culture (Sociology) at the University of California at Irvine.

He has previously taught courses in sociology, anthropology and Latino Politics, Chicano/Latino Studies at the University of California at Irvine, and Metropolitan University of Puerto Rico. He taught sociology for 10 years at Concordia University of Irvine before accepting a tenured position at California State University, Long Beach (Fall 2000).

During 1987 and 1990 he served as Associate Director for Studies (Social Science) at the Commission for Church in Society and later served as Associate Director for Racial Justice Advocacy at the Commission for Multicultural Ministries both positions at the national offices of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in Chicago, Illinois. He was responsible for researching social issues and providing social analysis for documents and processes in these units of the church.

He is presently working on a book manuscript about the racialization of Latino politics.