Alexandra Mendoza Covarrubias is a doctoral candidate in the Department of American Studies whose forthcoming dissertation, Birthing Resistance: Adolescent Chicana Motherhood and the Violence of Everyday Life, takes an interdisciplinary approach to understanding the connection between violence and adolescent pregnancy in the Chicano community. Her research interests include Chicana/o cultural production, Xicana feminisms, and the intersections of power and sexuality. Alex grew up in Los Angeles, CA and received her B.A. from the University of California, Santa Cruz where she completed a double major in Sociology and Community Studies and graduated with Honors.