About the Professors

Dr. Eliseo "Cheo" Torres

Since he was a boy growing up on the border of Texas and Mexico, Eliseo Torres, known to everyone as “Cheo,” has been fascinated by the folk traditions and folkways of Mexico and of his Mexican American roots. Both of his parents were versed in aspects of herbal lore and healing, and as he matured he learned from them a love and respect for the history and folk knowledge of the ancient art of curanderismo, or Mexican folk healing.

Now, Eliseo "Cheo" Torres is a retired administrator at the University of New Mexico, where he was Vice President for Student Affairs. Currently, he is a member of the Department of Chicana and Chicano Studies faculty. Cheo regularly lectures and offers a Summer class and online courses on the history, herbal remedies, and rituals of Curanderismo to audiences ranging from scholars and students to people hoping to become knowledgeable about alternative and traditional medicine, including lay people and medical professionals alike.  Before coming to New Mexico, his most recent role was Vice President for Student Affairs and Professor at the Texas A&M University-Kingsville.   

He has published seven books on his life in and research on his subject area.  His most recent books are: Curanderismo:  The Art of Traditional Medicine without Borders, and Curandero: Traditional Healers of Mexico and the Southwest published by Kendall Hunt Publishing Company, and previously published: Curandero: A Life in Mexican Folk Healing, and Healing with Herbs and Rituals: A Mexican Tradition, both available from the University of New Mexico Press.

Dr. Mario Del Angel-Guevara 

Dr. Mario Del Angel is from Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico, where he obtained his bachelor’s degree in bilingual education at the Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León. Del Angel is a PhD in Spanish from the University of New Mexico where he has taught courses in Spanish as a second language, heritage language, medical Spanish, and bilingual courses on Curanderismo: Traditional Medicine of Mexico and the Southwest. Dr. Del Angel has received his certificate in Mexican traditional medicine from CEDEHC, School of Community Human Development in Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico and his certificates on Spanish-English translation and interpretation from the National Center for Interpretation at the University of Arizona. Mario Del Angel Guevara has translated a number of books on traditional medicine and serves as a co-director for the Curanderismo program at the University of New Mexico. Del Angel focuses his research on the contributions and lives of curanderos in southern, central and northern Mexico and specializes in the Fidencista healing movement, a movement of curanderos who follow the teachings of El Niño Fidencio in Nuevo León, Mexico.