Profile

Luana Reis is a poet, educator, translator, and Black feminist scholar. Her research, artistic and teaching interests revolve around Black Diasporic and African Literature, Black Women Literature, Comparative approaches to Afro-diasporic Culture and Literature, Poetry and Poetics, Gender and Sexuality studies, Quilombos/Maroon Communities, Languages and Linguistics. 

Luana's teaching and scholarly contributions have been acknowledged through numerous awards. Among these are a Fulbright fellowship (FLTA 2013-2014), the "Excellence in Teaching Portuguese in the United States" from the American Organization of Teachers of Portuguese (AOTP) in 2017 and the AOTP Award for academic publication in 2018 with the paper "Empoderamento Feminino no Contexto de Sala de Aula de PLE." Most recently, in 2024, she was honored with the “K Leroy Irvis Inspiring Leadership Award” recognizing her commitment to educational excellence and innovative leadership within academia. Her work has been funded by multiple grants and fellowships, including the Immersive Dissertation Research Fellowship, supported by the Andrew W. Mellon- funded Humanities Engage project, Andrew W Mellon Predoctoral Fellowship, and Provost’s Dissertation Fellowship for Historically Underrepresented Doctoral Students. 

She has been an inspiring and dedicated leader of the AddVerse poetry organization. She created this group as a welcoming community where members of many cultures, languages, and backgrounds have the chance to reflect on the vital role poetry plays in advancing social justice and find their own poetic or artistic voice. Luana's fierce commitment to the power of poetry and to uplifting historically under-supported, under-resourced, and underrecognized voices have distinguished her as a writer, performer, educator, and champion of the arts. She has been a resident artist with the Pittsburgh Latinx Artist Residency, and her poetry, scholarship and translations have been featured in a diverse range of publications. 

Luana is a coordinator of the Kilomba Collective, a feminist organization dedicated to centering and empowering Black women. The collective engages in advocacy, education, community action, and both national and international collaboration, focusing on issues like education, social justice, gender equity, and immigrant rights. In addition, Luana serves as a board member of AOTP, where she directs the ENNEP (Encontro de Narrativas Negras em Português/Meeting of Black Narratives in Portuguese), an initiative that highlights and promotes Black narratives within the Portuguese-speaking world. She is also a member of the MLA Executive Council 2024–Jan. 2028.