Alberto Álvaro Ríos was born in Nogales, Arizona. He received a BA degree in 1974 and an MFA in creative writing in 1979, both from the University of Arizona. Ríos is a writer, arts advocate, poet, teacher, and a Regents’ Professor at Arizona State University (ASU), where he has taught for over 35 years and where he holds the further distinctions of the Katharine C. Turner Endowed Chair in English and University Professor of Letters. In 2013, he was designated the inaugural Arizona Poet Laureate, and in 2014 was elected to the Board of Chancellors of the Academy of American Poets.
Ríos is the author of eleven books and chapbooks of poetry, three collections of short stories, and a memoir about growing up on the Mexico-Arizona border. His memoir, called Capirotada: A Nogales Memoir, won the Latino Literary Hall of Fame Award and was designated the OneBookArizona choice for 2009. Ríos’ work is regularly taught, translated and included in more than 300 national and international anthologies, and has been adapted to dance and both classical and popular music.
He holds numerous awards, including six Pushcart Prizes in both poetry and fiction, the Arizona Governor’s Arts Award and fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts.
Along with his many accolades, Regents Professor Ríos has mentored generations of Chicano/Latino students aspiring to be creative writers and artists. Regents’ Professor Alberto Álvaro Ríos’ artistic creativity, used to imagine, change, experiment, and commemorate the Southwest in conjunction with his mentorship of so many students has brought international visibility and recognition to Arizona. In honor of these achievements, the ASU CLFSA recognizes an individual, group, or organization exemplifying passion for creatively affecting their community through the arts, mentorship of Chicano/Latino students, and leadership within ASU or the community.