Matt de la Peña

Assistant Professor of Fiction
Office: AL-213 | Email: [email protected]

Matt de la Peña is the #1 New York Times Bestselling, Newbery Medal-winning author of seven young adult novels (including "Mexican WhiteBoy" and "We Were Here"), two middle grade novels, and seven picture books (including "Patchwork" and "Last Stop on Market Street").

In 2016 he was awarded the NCTE Intellectual Freedom Award. de la Peña received his MFA in creative writing from San Diego State University and his B.A. from the University of the Pacific where he attended school on a full basketball scholarship. In 2019 de la Peña was awarded an honorary doctorate from UOP.