Jesús Villa

Jesús Villa is an Adjunct Professor of Anthropology and Storytelling at Maricopa County Community College District, while concurrently serving as a PhD student and Teaching Assistant in the School of Transborder Studies at Arizona State University (ASU). He holds a BA in Anthropology (2011) and an MA in Religious Studies (2016), both from ASU, with his PhD in Transborder Studies currently in progress. His research focuses on the intersection of medical examiners' offices, federal immigration policy, forensic necroviolence, U.S. necropolitics, and the migrant death crisis along the México-U.S. border.

• Education:
• BA Anthropology, ASU (2011)
• MA Religious Studies, ASU (2016)
• PhD Transborder Studies (In Progress)

Research interests include the historical and contemporary impacts of border policies on marginalized communities, with particular attention to ritual practices in curanderismo and their West African roots. He has taught courses like Transborder Theory (TCL 303/SOC 303) and Politic Ecology of the Border (TCL 443/SOS 463/ASB 463).

Villa has held roles as Success Coach/Coordinator at ASU’s First-Year Success Center, Academic Success Advisor for the School of Molecular Sciences, and Research Assistant across multiple colleges. He volunteers with organizations such as Patiloni, Sagrado Galleria, and White People Against White Supremacy, emphasizing community engagement and social justice.