Kilgo Quad - Faculty Fellow

Fun Fact

I'm bilingual and sometimes speak in Spanglish

Sophia Enriquez

Assistant Professor of music

Raised on a small farm in southern Ohio, Sophia's academic research reflects her Mexican-Appalachian heritage and focuses on Latino communities and their cultural practices in the U.S. South and Appalachian region. Sophia earned a PhD in ethnomusicology from the Ohio State University and works as assistant professor in the music department and the program for Latino/a Studies in the Global South here at Duke. Sophia spends a lot of her free time playing music with friends. In 2021, she co-founded Son de Carolina–a Durham-based collective that plays a style of regional Mexican folk music called son jarocho and organizes the annual Fandango de Durham festival. When she's not researching music or playing music, she loves taking weekend roadtrips, trying out new recipes, and hanging out with her cuddly cat Franklin.

What are you most looking forward to as a Faculty Fellow?

I'm looking forward to getting to know students over one of my favorite ways to gather--food! In the words of Julia Child "people who love to eat are always the best people."

What advice would you give to current undergraduates?

Just when you feel like you might have something figured out, something will happen that makes you realize you do not indeed have it figured out. That's normal and part of the fun--none of us have it all figured out! Just try your best. You will make mistakes. But mistakes keep us humble and human. You'll learn from them and it will all be okay.

What is something you think students should know during their time at Duke?

Durham is an amazing and vibrant city bursting with local arts and culture. There are great initiatives at Duke to connect you with the local Durham community!