Dr. Barbara Gomez-Aguinaga is the Associate Director of the Stanford Latino Entrepreneurship Initiative (SLEI) at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. As a Latino politics scholar and social equity expert, Dr. Gomez-Aguinaga has conducted academic and applied research on pressing social and economic issues facing the Latino community in the United States, including immigration, health, and economic equity through entrepreneurship.

In the past, Dr. Gomez-Aguinaga was a professor of public policy and social equity in the School of Public Administration at the University of Nebraska, Omaha. She served as doctoral fellow at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) Center for Health Policy and the Center for Social Policy at the University of New Mexico.

Before academia, Dr. Gomez-Aguinaga served as researcher and independent research contractor for multiple organizations such as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of New Mexico, conducting research on the use of solitary confinement across the state; the Migration Policy Institute in Washington, DC, providing support for the U.S. Immigration Policy Program on issues such as immigration enforcement and deferred action; and the Immigrant Legal Resource Center in San Francisco, CA, doing research on immigration enforcement policies, unaccompanied minors and the DACA program.

Her research has been featured in prominent media outlets such as the New York Times and NBC News, has led to policy changes in the criminal justice system in New Mexico, and has been cited in the US Courts, the Senate, and congressional hearings and testimonies addressing the incorporation of racial minorities and immigrant youth.



Dr. Gomez-Aguinaga’s research examines the intersection of the public policy-making process and the politics of minority groups. She is specifically interested in analyzing the ways in which ethno-racial minorities are impacted by differential policy outcomes. Her research projects in this area have focused on immigration, health and the criminal justice system. In addition to academic publications, her research in this area has been featured in prominent newspapers such as The New York Times and NBC News, has led to recent policy changes to the criminal justice system in the state of New Mexico, and has been cited in congressional hearings and testimonies addressing the incorporation of immigrant youth.

Her second area of research examines the attitudes of minority groups towards politics and public policies, with an emphasis on Latinos and immigrants. Dr. Gomez-Aguinaga’s projects in this area examine the media effects of Spanish-language news media on policy salience and political attitudes of US Latinos. Her research in this area has been published in Aztlán: A Journal of Chicano Studies and the Journal of Race Ethnicity and Politics, and is forthcoming in Social Science Quarterly.

choose your poison




- Politics of Ethnic Groups (POLS 300), Spring 2019 (45 students)


- Public Policy and Administration (POLS 270), Fall 2018 (51 students)


- Hispanics in U.S. Politics (POLS 308) w/Dr. Gabriel R. Sanchez, Fall 2018


- Health Policy and Politics (POLS 376) w/Dr. McFarlane, Spring 2017


- American Politics (POLS 200) with Dr. Jessica T. Feezell, Spring 2016


- Research Seminar in Race, Ethnicity, and US Campaigns and Elections (POLS 511) with Dr. Gabriel R. Sanchez, Fall 2016

Website:    www.BarbaraGomez.com

Personal email:       contact@barbaragomez.com

Professional email:       bga@stanford.edu