Juan Carlos Sola Corbacho was born in Madrid and completed his PhD in history and geography at the University Complutense de Madrid. After teaching and researching in Mexico City, he began an academic career in the U.S., teaching early modern and modern European history, and later Spanish culture, at Centenary College in Louisiana and Texas Christian University. He then joined the faculty at John V. Roach Honors College, where he taught variety of interdisciplinary courses and was recognized by the students as best professor of the year in 2016.

To incorporate an international perspective into his teaching, Juan Carlos developed new courses that connected American students with professors and students from Bulgaria, Romania, Peru, and Poland—creating the first virtual classroom on campus via videoconference (long before Zoom!). He also taught classes on contemporary global issues, inviting numerous activists from around the world to be interviewed in class. His research interests include the commercial networks created by 18th-century immigrants in Madrid and Mexico City, and his current work examines the first European newspapers published in Western Europe.