Isabel Castillo Cortes holds a law degree from the Centro de Estudios Universitarios del Norte (CEUN-Mexico), a master’s degree in Latin American Literature from New Mexico State University (NMSU), and a PhD in Philosophy with a focus on Spanish from Texas Tech University (TTU). She has taught Spanish as a Second Language at NMSU and TTU, working with L2 learners, Heritage Speakers, and Study Abroad programs in Spain. She also served as president of Sigma Delta Pi and has contributed as an editor for academic and literary journals such as Céfiro and Arenas Blancas.

Her research interests focus on cultural, interdisciplinary, and transdisciplinary studies, with a current emphasis on the literature of drug trafficking and its impact on collective psychology.

Beyond academia, Castillo Cortes is an accomplished creative writer. She has participated in more than fifteen anthologies and literary magazines in Mexico, Spain, and the United States, and is the author of two novels, Aurora and Los Rezanderos. She also writes poetry and theater, reflecting her passion for literature and the arts.