Dr. Joanne Rondilla is Assistant Professor of Asian American Studies in the Department of Sociology and Interdisciplinary Social Sciences at San Jose State University.

While at Arizona State University, she was granted the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Outstanding Lecturer Award. At present, she is working on her manuscript, “Colonial Faces: Beauty and Skin Color Hierarchy in the Philippines and the U.S.” This project explores how perceptions of beauty, skin color hierarchy, the globalization of beauty standards, and the ongoing colonial relationship between the Philippines and the U.S. are related. Some of her notable publications include: Red & Yellow, Black & Brown: Decentering Whiteness in Mixed Race Studies (co-edited with Paul Spickard and Rudy Guevarra); Is Lighter Better? Skin-Tone Discrimination Among Asian Americans (co-authored with Paul Spickard). She has two articles that are currently in-press that address colorism and representations on television (respectively).

Originally from Dededo, Guam, she and her family moved to the San Francisco bay area (Union City) when she was thirteen years old. She holds degrees from UC Berkeley (M.A., Ph.D.) and UC Santa Barbara (B.A.). Previously, she has taught at Sonoma State University, Arizona State University, UC Berkeley, and Santa Clara University. She has teaching and research expertise in Ethnic Studies, Cultural Studies, and Sociology with specializations in Asian American Studies, Gender/Feminist Studies, Filipino/American Studies, and Pacific Islander Studies. Outside of the academy, she has more than twelve years of work experience in the cosmetics industry as a skincare specialist and make-up artist.