Anayeli Lopez, MSW, PhD

Faculty Affiliate

Anayeli Lopez, PhD, MSW, is an Assistant Professor in the School of Social Work at New Mexico State University, in Las Cruces, NM. Dr. Lopez received dual Ph.D. degrees in Social Welfare from Boston College and ITESO-Jesuit University of Guadalajara in 2009.

During her doctoral studies she was the recipient of the Fellowship in International Social Welfare at Boston College-ITESO. Dr. Lopez practiced social work in Indiana, where she developed educational interventions, conducted outreach, and developed partnerships between local schools, community leaders, and Latino immigrant families to increase awareness and access to higher education.

Dr. Lopez also holds several years of experience conducting research on Latino immigrant families and children using both qualitative and quantitative methodologies. Her research focuses on the impact of immigration enforcement on the well-being of immigrant families and children and addressing the service need of this population. She has conducted research to better understand the familial, social, and educational realities of Latino immigrant families in North Central Indiana, including those who are undocumented.

She has also examined the outcomes of unaccompanied children from Central America in long-term foster care. Most recently, Dr. Lopez served as the consultant of an evaluation study for the McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program in Honduras, a program funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Some of the outcomes of her work include several refereed conference presentations and publications in peer-reviewed academic articles.