The Department of Latin American, Latino, & Iberian Studies (LALIS) is a diverse community that perceives the study of language, literature, and culture as integral to understanding the human experience. Our interdisciplinary humanities program highlights the cultural and linguistic diversity of the Iberian Peninsula and the Americas, including varieties of Spanglish in the United States. Our unique and expanding course catalog, which emphasizes content relevant to the Spanish and Portuguese-speaking worlds, includes courses in languages, literatures, linguistics, and community-based learning, as well as film, theater, performance, translation, cultural, and Latino studies. In LALIS, we welcome students of all linguistic backgrounds, whether their language experience began at home or in school, in the United States or abroad. We prepare students to engage in purposeful lives by fostering intellectual curiosity and integrity, cross-cultural awareness, and linguistic empathy.
We are committed to empowering students to combat racial and social inequities.
- Matt Kanwit, '05 has been promoted to Associate Professor at University of Pittsburgh.
- Congratulations to the 2022 LALIS Award Winners:
Outstanding LALIS Majors
Hannah Grace Howell
Anna Postma
Outstanding Service to the Richmond Hispanic Community
Ally Osterberg
Outstanding Assistant Teacher in LALIS
Isabelle Drayer
The Modern Languages Award-Latin American, Latino & Iberian Studies
Braxton Hughes
Faculty Highlights
- Giancaspro Published
David Giancaspro, assistant professor of Spanish, and Josh Higdon, '21, published the article, "(Ir)regular Mood Swings: Lexical Variability in Heritage Speakers' Oral Production of Subjunctive Mood" in Language Learning.
- Giancaspro Published
David Giancaspro, assistant professor of Spanish, published a chapter in Language in Development and Use: A Crosslinguistic Perspective.
- Méndez Invited to Brazil
Mariela Méndez, associate professor and chair of LALIS, was invited to Brazil in December ’20 and January ’21 to give lectures at Universidade Federal de São Paulo and Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro on Brazilian writer Clarice Lispector.
- Vazquez Published
Karina Vazquez, director of community-based learning, and a number of her students, recently published “Vulnerable Bodies: Domestic Violence in The Hispanic/Latinx Community During A Pandemic” in Latinx Talk. Read the article here.
- Méndez Published
Mariela Méndez, associate professor and chair of LALIS, just published a co-edited volume of essays on contemporary Argentinean writer María Moreno titled El Affair Moreno (Buenos Aires: Editorial Mansalva, 2020).
- Méndez Published
Mariela Méndez, associate professor of LALIS and WGSS, published “Operación Araña: Reflections on How a Performative Intervention in Buenos Aires's Subway System can Help Rethink Feminist Activism.” in a renowned history journal from Brazil.
- Herrera and Méndez Published
Patricia Herrera, associate professor of theatre, and Mariela Méndez, associate professor of LALIS and WGSS, published an “Performando un activismo feminista: El trabajo de Debora Kuetzpal Vasquez en La Marca” in Conjunto.
- Méndez awarded
Mariela Méndez, Associate Professor of LALIS and WGSS, has received a Fulbright Scholar Award to support three months in Rio de Janeiro to advance her research on understanding representations of genders and sexualities in Latin American newspapers and magazines.
- Vazquez and Wright Published
Karina Vazquez, Director of Community-Based Learning, and Martha Wright, Assistant Curator of Academic and Public Engagement, published "Bridging Gaps and Disadvantages: University Students using Museums in Spanish as a Practice towards Inclusion" in University Museums and Collections Journal.
- Feldman receives two grants
Sharon G. Feldman, Professor of Spanish and Catalan Studies, received a grant from the Fundación SGAE to translate and adapt into English Un conte de Nadal (A Christmas Carol) and another from the Sala Beckett to translate Fairfly, an award-winning contemporary Catalan play by Joan Yago.
Scholarship Repository Readership
The University of Richmond's Scholarship Repository shares faculty publications with a world-wide audience. The map below shows where articles from LALIS faculty are being read around the globe.
LALIS Feature Stories
Videos
UR Learning Abroad: Gwen Setterberg, '15
UR Learning Abroad: Gwen Setterberg, ’15 discusses her academic year in Brazil and how living abroad gave new meaning and understanding to the music she loves to perform.
Latin American and Iberian Studies: Práctica Oral
In Práctica Oral, University of Richmond students learn Spanish through small group conversation. These interactive and fast-paced sessions are led by fellow undergraduate students who serve as assistant teachers.
Upcoming Events
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Resources
Contact Us
Mailing Address:
Department of Latin American, Latino, and Iberian Studies
University of Richmond
211 Richmond Way
Carole Weinstein International Center
University of Richmond, VA 23173
Phone: (804) 484-1543
Fax: (804) 484-1544
Department Chair: Mariela Méndez
Administrative Coordinator: Sarah Helen Studebaker
Director of Community-Based Learning: Karina Vazquez
Director of Spanish Intensive Language Program: Ted Peebles