Amador, Melva. Ms. Amador was born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico.  Right after high school, she studied Fashion Design at Parsons School of Design in NYC and worked as a Fashion Designer for 6 years in Puerto Rico. She finished a Bachelor in Art in Fine Arts with concentrations in Printmaking and Photography and with a minor in Women Studies at the University of New Mexico in 1998.  In 2001, Melva graduated from her Masters degree in Latin American Studies with concentrations in Art History and Hispanic Literature.  In the summer of 2001,  participated in the Smithsonian’s Latino Seminar.  Currently Ms. Amador is  in her second year Ph.D. studies in Hispanic Literature at the University of New Mexico.  She is interested in the topic of Latina and Latino Literature, Latin American Literature, and the relationship between literature and fine arts.  She is  the co-president of the Spanish and Portuguese Graduate Student Association.