Francisco Jim©nez emigrated from Tlaquepaque, Mexico, to California, where he worked for many years in the fields with his family. He received both his master€s degree and his Ph.D. from Columbia University and is now chairman of the Modern Languages and Literature Department at Santa Clara University, the setting of much of Reaching Out. He is the award-winning author of The Circuit, Breaking Through, La Mariposa, and his newest novel, Reaching Out. He lives in Santa Clara, California, with his family.