Jorge Pérez De Jesús is a doctoral student in Literacy and Language Education at Purdue University whose research focuses on literacy development in underrepresented communities, and he serves as Site Coordinator for the Purdue Freedom School. The first person in his immediate family to graduate from high school, he earned degrees in Spanish, history, second-language teaching, and Hispanic literatures, with an emphasis on Afro-Latino and Afro-Brazilian literature. Jorge has taught Spanish, history, and ESL for more than 20 years in the Chicago area and internationally. In 2018, he retired as a captain from the U.S. Army Reserve after 31 years of service and three combat tours, earning numerous military and civilian honors. A proud member of Sigma Lambda Beta International Fraternity, Inc., Jorge has held leadership positions at the chapter, regional, and national levels and currently serves as a trustee of the SLB Education Foundation. Originally from Vieques, Puerto Rico, he is the proud father of a daughter who also works in higher education.