Tonya Monique Foster (born January 20, 1966), is an American poet, essayist, and professor at San Francisco State University.
Foster was born in Bloomington, Illinois but raised in New Orleans, Louisiana. She earned a BA from Tulane University. She then went on to obtain an MFA from the University of Houston. She earned her PhD from CUNY Graduate Center.
She has taught at Bard College, Queens College CUNY, Baruch College CUNY, andCalifornia College of the Arts. She currently holds the position of the George and Judy Marcus Endowed Chair, Associate Professor at San Francisco State University,