Academic Program: PhD, Modern Languages and Literatures
Degrees you currently have: Master's degree in Modern Languages and Literatures (minor in Ethnic Studies)/Bachelor's degree in Foreign Languages Teaching
Hometown: Bucaramanga, Columbia
Preferred pronouns: She/her/hers
Why did you select your program?
My passion for languages led me to pursue a master’s degree in Modern Languages and Literatures. The multicultural environment of the United States allowed me to engage with diverse languages and cultures, which enriched my learning experience.
What has been your best experience as a graduate student at Nebraska?
My most rewarding experience as a Latinx graduate student was teaching SPAN 300A, a course for Spanish Heritage Speakers. This opportunity was significant because it allowed me to connect with the Latinx and Chicanx community and learn from my students' experiences and their families.
Who have been some of your strongest mentors or role models here?
Professor Isabel Velázquez has been a consistent source of support throughout my program, especially during our collaboration in the SPAN 300A course. I would be honored to have her as my PhD advisor and collaborate with her on research in heritage speakers pedagogy and sociolinguistics.
Do you have research experience? If so, please describe.
In 2023, I presented a paper entitled “Border Crossers: Migration as a Permanent Border Crossing and Writing as a Form of Healing in the Memoir Distance Between Us” at the 17th Annual Kaleidoscope Conference at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. I completed a translation from Spanish to English of of life trajectories titled “The Forgotten Voices of the Colombian Armed Conflict Victims,” which were published in the journal Cambios y Permanencias at Universidad Industrial de Santander. For my undergraduate thesis, I conducted an exploratory study in Colombia about the phenomenon of native-speakerism and how it affects EFL students, native and non-native teachers with regard to self-subjectivities, working conditions, and self-perceived linguistic and pedagogical differences.
What are your plans once you have earned the degree?
My future plans include pursuing a PhD at UNL, with academic interests in heritage speakers’ pedagogy, sociolinguistics, and translation. In the future, I aspire to be a full-time professor teaching Spanish and French, and also work as an interpreter for international organizations.
