Patricia Zavella facts for kids

Patricia Zavella is an American anthropologist and professor who teaches at the University of California, Santa Cruz. She works in the Latin American and Latino Studies department.

Professor Zavella has dedicated her career to supporting Latina and Chicana feminism. She does this through her studies, teaching, and activism. She used to be the president of the Association of Latina and Latino Anthropologists. She also served on the main board of the American Anthropological Association.

In 2016, she won an award from the American Anthropological Association. This award recognized her work studying gender discrimination. The award committee praised her for helping women, especially Latina and Chicana women. Her work helps us understand how things like gender, race, and social class connect.

Professor Zavella's research looks at how people move from one place to another. She also studies gender and health in Latino communities. She explores how Latino families change over time. Her work also includes feminist studies and how to do research by observing people.

She has worked on many projects with others. One important partnership was with Xóchitl Castañeda. Together, they wrote several articles in both English and Spanish. In 2010, she received another award for her important work in North American studies.

Her books include I'm Neither Here Nor There (2011). This book is about working-class Mexican Americans in Santa Cruz County. It shows their daily struggles with moving and poverty. It also explores how they find their own identity.

Early Life and Activism

Patricia Zavella was born in 1949 in Tampa, Florida. She was the oldest of twelve children in her family. Her parents were born in the United States. English was the main language spoken at home. Her father was in the Air Force, so her family moved often.

Patricia was often one of the few Mexican-American children in her schools. Her teachers were always impressed by how well she did in class. When she was ten, her family settled in Ontario, California. There were more Mexican-Americans in her classes there. This made her think deeply about race relations and the Spanish language.

In 1968, Zavella went to Chaffey Community College. This college was near her family's home. She was inspired by Dolores Huerta and Cesar Chavez. She became involved with the Chicano/a movement. She became a student activist. She helped support some of the first classes in Mexican-American studies.

In August 1970, Zavella joined the Chicano Moratorium. About 25,000 other activists protested in East Los Angeles. They were protesting against the Vietnam War. She began to identify herself as a Chicana. This happened when she joined MECA, which stands for [Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlán].

Education and University Career

Patricia Zavella earned her bachelor's degree in anthropology from Pitzer College. After that, she went to graduate school at UC Berkeley. She earned her PhD in anthropology there in 1982. Her PhD paper was about women working in Chicano families. This paper later became her first book.

Social movements greatly influenced her identity. They also shaped her desire to create knowledge that helps communities. Zavella was one of the first scholars to study how race, gender, and social class affect Chicana women workers. This way of researching came from feminist activists of color in the 1960s and 1970s.

Key Roles and Contributions

• She earned her BA in anthropology at Pitzer College.
• She completed her PhD in anthropology at UC Berkeley in 1982.
• Before joining UC Santa Cruz, she taught at other universities. These included California State University at Hayward and UC Berkeley. She also taught at UC Santa Barbara.
• She worked as a researcher at Stanford University. This was with the Center for Chicano Research.
• In 1983, she was hired by UCSC's community studies program. She first had a temporary job. After a year, she got a permanent position. Later, she moved to the Latin American and Latino Studies department.
• From 1999 to 2003, she directed the Chicano and Latino Research Center.
• She helped start both the bachelor's and PhD programs in Latin American and Latino Studies at UC Santa Cruz.
• She also represented UCSC on the UC Committee on Latino Research.

Awards and Special Recognition

Professor Zavella has received many important awards for her work:

• In 2016, she received the American Anthropological Association's Committee on Gender Equity in Anthropology Award.
• Also in 2016, she received the ALLA Distinguished Career Award from the Association of Latina and Latino Anthropologists.
• In 2010, she won the Distinguished Career Achievement Award. This was from the Society for the Anthropology of North America.
• She received an Honorable Mention for the Excellence in Teaching Award in 2010.
• In 2009, she gave a special Faculty Research Lecture at UC Santa Cruz.
• The Chicano/Latino Research Center at UC Santa Cruz named her Scholar of the Year in 2006.
• In 2003, she was named NACCS Scholar of the Year. This was by the National Association for Chicana and Chicano Studies.
• Her book Telling to Live: Latina Feminist Testimonios won an award in 2002. She co-authored this book with The Latina Feminist Group.
• In October 2002, Hispanic Business Magazine named her one of the 100 Most Influential Hispanics.
• In 1991, she won the Distinguished Achievement Award. This was for her book Women's Work and Chicano Families: Cannery Workers of the Santa Clara Valley.

Research Interests

Professor Zavella's studies have created a strong base for Latina and Chicana feminist studies. She is interested in several key areas:

• How families change over time.
• The challenges of poverty.
• How Mexicans move across borders to new countries.
• Chicana-Latina studies.
• Feminism, which is about equal rights for women.
• How to do research by observing people in their daily lives.

Her teaching covers topics like migration, gender, and health in Latino communities. She also teaches about Latino families and how to study Latino cultures.