About

Intersectional and Interdisciplinary Feminist Scholar.

Our feelings are our most genuine paths to knowledge.
-Audre Lorde

Bring something incomprehensible into the world!
-Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari

My name is Dr. Al Valentín (they/them). I hold a PhD in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies from Rutgers University and my research interests largely center how emerging technologies and media reshape our understanding of the world, of each other, and of ourselves.

I was the Postdoctoral Fellow at New Jersey City University as part of the Mellon Foundation Public Knowledge Grant, Digital Ethnic Futures Consortium (DEFCon). The grant is designed to lessen the digital divide by bringing Digital Humanities training to Hispanic-serving Institutions, Minority Serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and Tribal Colleges and Universities. Additionally, the grant aimed to center Digital Humanities work that integrates Critical Ethnic Studies teachings to ensure that our understanding of technology takes into account questions of bias and justice.

To this end, I spent the last two years designing curriculum, workshops, and training materials to upskill faculty, students, and community partners in artificial intelligence, game development, digital humanities methods, and feminist science and technology studies.

Because I am trained in Gender Studies, my work is interdisciplinary. My research thus puts game studies and feminist science and technology studies into conversation with affect theory, Black feminist theory, woman of color feminisms, transgender studies, queer of color critique, and critical disability studies.

As an avid gamer, my dissertation and ongoing research consider how the circulation of feelings in gaming alters our perception of humanity within gaming as well as outside of it.

When I’m not researching or teaching, I’m dabbling in game development, practicing the drums, mutual aid organizing, and gleefully listening to my friends’ latest special interests. Please feel free to send me a message and tell me about yours.