痴补苍诲别谤产颈濒迟鈥檚 experience is a special aspect of student life at the university, rooted in authentic connection and engagement. Undergraduate houses and colleges are led by faculty who live with their families and pets in special suites within the residence halls and lead programming to create another vibrant layer of learning and community. Meet the university鈥檚 newest faculty heads of house and heads of college in this special series.
, assistant professor of the practice in , director of Caribbean Studies and coordinator of Foreign Language and Area Studies is faculty head of , one of the upper-division residential colleges.
Ruiz is a historian of Latin America and the Caribbean, and he has a book coming out on the history of Haiti and its monumental revolution of 1791鈥�1804. He teaches courses on Afro-Latin America, migration in the Americas and Caribbean Studies.
Caribbean Studies and coordinator of Foreign Language and Area Studies (Harrison McClary/Vanderbilt)
Name: Jes煤s G. Ruiz
搁别蝉颈诲别苍迟颈补濒听颁辞濒濒别驳别: Moore College
Years at Vanderbilt: 5
Hometown: Mesa, Arizona, but my 鈥渟oul home鈥� is New Orleans.
Favorite song: This is very hard. I listen to a broad range of music. Today, I have 鈥淎 Dear Old Southland鈥� by Allen Toussaint on loop. Tomorrow, it may be 鈥淓oO鈥� by Bad Bunny or 鈥淥jal谩鈥� by Silvio Rodriguez. The next day it might be 鈥淭he Fool鈥� by Moderat, a German electronic music supergroup from Berlin. But, if necessary, I have to go with 鈥淪t. James Infirmary鈥� by Louis Armstrong.
Favorite book: This is even harder! Lately, I鈥檝e been really into Yuri Herrera鈥檚 work. Specifically, his Signs Preceding the End of the World and, most recently, his La Estaci贸n del Pantano (Season of the Swamp). Others include Valeria Luiselli鈥檚 The Lost Children Archive, James Baldwin鈥檚 The Fire Next Time聽and two all-time classics: Masters of the Dew by Haitian writer Jacques Roumain and Pedro P谩ramo by Mexican writer Juan Rulfo.
Favorite food: My mother鈥檚 cooking. Northern Mexican style food, specifically 迟茅辫补谤颈蝉 (white bean dish), tacos dorados (crunchy tacos) and pasta verde (hatch pepper/green chile sauce pasta).
Favorite spot on campus: The basketball court at the Rec Center!
Why did you want to be a faculty聽head of house? As a baseline, I feel like I have a great connection with undergrads, so I thought this would be a great opportunity to expand this and take it to another level. Also, I just genuinely believe in the living-learning model of residential colleges and having the opportunity to engage with students beyond the classroom in various social and cultural environments, particularly through community engagement.
What advice do you have for students coming to campus? Step by step, one foot in front of the other. It might be overwhelming at first, but you鈥檙e entering some of the best years of your life, so be gentle with yourself and enjoy it.
What funny or poignant experience have you had at Vanderbilt? I won the 鈥淢aestrx Award鈥� for excellence in undergraduate teaching at the Latinx Commencement Celebration in 2024. I wasn鈥檛 even full-time faculty yet (final year of my postdoc), and I鈥檒l never forget seeing one of my student nominators crying in the audience as I went up to the stage to receive it. It meant the world to me.
What do you love about working at Vanderbilt? I love being able to connect in such meaningful ways with my students, having amazing colleagues at the top of their fields, and the important blend of top-tier research with a liberal arts education.
Anything else you want people to know about you? I have two little boys named Marcos (6) and Santos (3), my wife, Elise, is an OB/GYN. I also have a knack for beatboxing and basketball, and I can do 鈥淛uicy鈥� by the Notorious B.I.G. word for word in karaoke.
