Resident Director & On-Site Staff

Amy T. Morris - Resident Director

Amy Morris is the Resident Director of the Border Studies Program.

She brings extensive experience as an educator, living and working in Latin America, and a breadth of other experience to the program. She holds a Masters in Public Policy (MPP) with concentrations in Immigration & Human Rights and Global Policy from the University of Minnesota’s Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs as well as a B.A. in Latin American Studies and Urban Studies (Geography) from Macalester College (MN).

Originally from near Boston, MA, Amy has long had an interest in the border and immigration policy issues which primarily developed from living and working on the “other side” of the border, in Latin America. Amy has lived, worked and/or studied in Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil, Guatemala, Nicaragua and Mexico. Her most recent position in the region was as a member of the Witness for Peace International Team in Nicaragua and Colombia. During that time, Amy and her teammates monitored the impacts of US policy in the region and hosted delegations of US citizens interested in working for a more just US policy towards Latin America. Primary issues she researched were anti-narcotics aerial fumigation and protection of human rights defenders in Colombia and free trade, structural adjustment and debt relief in Nicaragua.

Besides her work with Witness for Peace, Amy has conducted research on the structural causes and dynamics of street children in Latin America, the U.S.-Colombia free trade agreement, an industry specific migratory stream from Guatemala to North Carolina, immigrant meatpacking workers in the Midwest, changes in immigration policy post September 11, 2001, refugee mental health, the connection between sustainable development and migration from the Mixteca region of Oaxaca, Mexico, and myriad other topics related to immigration, human rights and democracy in Latin America.

In addition to working on issues related to immigration, Latin America and human rights, Amy has worked as a High School teacher, Service Learning Coordinator and Union Researcher. Amy believes strongly in social justice and the potential for young people to play a key role in building an effective movement towards achieving a more just world.

A big fan of salt-water sports, Lake Superior activities, the Boston Red Sox and gardening, Amy will be looking for new hobbies in the landlocked desert border region.

Riley Merline - Associate Director

Riley Merline is the Associate Director of the Border Studies Program.

Riley recently joined the Border Studies Program team and is really looking forward to making the program a great success this fall. Riley holds a Masters in Latin American Studies from the University of Arizona where he focused on U.S. intervention, Latin American revolutions & counterrevolutions, development, and international political economy. As a graduate student Riley also conducted research on the history of U.S.-Mexico border fence construction and immigration policy. Originally from Wisconsin, he holds a B.A. in Spanish from Northern Michigan University and has lived in Tucson, Arizona since late 2005.

Riley’s interest in the intertwined histories of the United States and Latin America extends back to his year abroad in 1999-2000 when he studied for a semester in Valdivia, Chile and spent several months traveling through the Andean countries from the south of Patagonia to Bolivia and Peru. Since then he has spent several years studying and educating North Americans about key issues in U.S.-Latin American relations. For more than two years Riley worked on the Witness for Peace International Team in Colombia leading educational delegations and investigating the effects of Plan Colombia’s military aid and anti-narcotics programs on human rights and development efforts. After moving to Tucson, he worked for BorderLinks leading experiential education seminars along the U.S.-Mexico border with a focus on migration and immigration policy, free trade, international debt, cross border economies, labor issues, and human rights.

In addition to his work with Witness for Peace and BorderLinks, Riley worked as the research assistant on the Colombia Documentation Project at the National Security Archive in Washington, D.C., participated in delegations to Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela, traveled to Puerto Rico to research issues of gentrification in Vieques, and taught English in Berlin, Germany.

Whenever possible, Riley escapes the city to explore the natural beauty of the Sonoran Desert, to rock climb, or just to watch the sunset. He plays ultimate Frisbee, enjoys independent and foreign films, loves books, and is committed to building more just and equitable societies across all borders.

Lily Huang - Program Associate

Lily Huang is the Program Associate for the Fall 2008 Border Studies program.

Lily is originally from Boston, Massachusetts and grew up in Quincy, Massachusetts. She graduated in 2008 from Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York with a B.A. in Geography and a correlate in Hispanic Studies. At Vassar, she participated in the Vassar-Poughkeepsie E.S.L. Tutors Program and the May Day Working Group. She is interested in issues of race, borders and activism, both at the U.S.-Mexico boundary and in the borderlands all around us.

Lily was a 2006 participant of the Border Studies program in El Paso, Texas and Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua. While on the border, she interned as a community organizer and teacher at Biblioteca Infantil in Colonia Anapra outside of Ciudad Juárez. In addition to tutoring and teaching classes, she worked coordinating relationships between Biblioteca and Cinco Puntos Press, CETLAC, and Centro de Apoyo al Migrante. Lily returned to Juárez and Biblioteca last summer on a Vassar College Burnam Fellowship and worked at Centro de Apoyo al Migrante.

Sra. Cristina Sanchez is the Housing Coordinator for the families in Ciudad Juárez. She is also a host mother who has worked with the program since it began. Cristina is a native of Ciudad Juárez but has also lived in many areas of the world including Barcelona, Mexico City, and San Francisco. In addition to working with the families, Cristina is instrumental in planning many of the orientation activities as well as program activities throughout the fall semester when it is in Juárez. Students should feel free to ask Cristina questions, talk to her about any concerns, or to contact her at any time. Cristina lives in Ciudad Juárez. Her daughter Titi also lives in Juárez, and she graduated from UTEP.

International Programs Office, Earlham College

Cheryl King - Program Associate
International Programs Office at Earlham College

Cheryl King serves as the Border Studies Program Associate in the International Programs Office at Earlham College. Her main responsibilities involve recruitment and promotion of the program. She also provides support to the on-site staff.

Cheryl has had an interest in border issues since her first trip to Rio Grande Valley in 2002. In addition to working with the BSP, she also co-leads a trip to the border that is part of a class on border issues at Heidelberg College.

Cheryl graduated from Heidelberg College with a B.A. in Spanish and International Studies and from Ohio University with a Master of Arts in International Affairs in Latin American Studies. While at OU, Cheryl earned certificates in Teaching English as a Foreign Language and Women's Studies.

Cheryl enjoys traveling, reading, cooking, baking, and spending time with her friends and family.

Caitlin Flannery - Student Intern
International Programs Office at Earlham College

Caitlin Flannery is the BSP Student Intern for the 2008-2009 school year. Caitlin participated in the Border Studies Program (BSP) in the fall of 2007. As a student on the program, Caitlin worked for Casa del Migrante, a shelter that provides food and support to recent migrants to Juárez and those who have been deported from the United States. Caitlin is currently a senior at Earlham College, majoring in Latin American Studies and Spanish and Hispanic Studies.  In addition to her work as the BSP intern, Caitlin is a teaching assistant for Spanish classes, and involved in the Richmond Interpreters and Translators Association (RITA).

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