About the Professors

 Dr. Mario Del Angel Guevara. Assistant   Professor. 

Dr. Mario Del Angel Guevara is a bicultural, bilingual and biliterate researcher, Assistant Professor and author on Hispanic/Indigenous traditional medicine topics and the Spanish language in New Mexico. He is a native of Monterrey, Mexico who has deep connections to New Mexico through his academic, professional and personal life. Dr. Del Angel Guevara has an extensive history and commitment in the state and has made significant contributions to the understanding and preservation of Hispanic/Chicano New Mexican culture and its Spanish varieties. Mario Del Angel Guevara has a certificate on traditional medicine from school CEDEHC in Cuernavaca, Mexico, two certificates on Spanish-English medical translation and interpretation by the University of Arizona, a Bachelor’s degree in bilingual education from Universidad Autonóma de Nuevo León, and a M.A. and PhD in Hispanic linguistics from the University of New Mexico where he has taught several courses on topics relevant to the region including Curanderismo traditional medicine, Medical Spanish and Spanish as a heritage and second language. As Director of the Curanderismo Traditional Medicine without Borders program, he is a key figure in studying and preserving traditional healing practices in the region through his leadership at the University. His work on Curanderismo in Mexico and the U.S. southwest and on the traditional Spanish varieties of northern New Mexico are examples of his deep academic interest and dedication to the cultures and peoples of New Mexico.

Dr. Eliseo "Cheo" Torres. Emeritus Professor (Retired)

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.