In collaboration with Dr. Eve Higby at California State University, East Bay, this mixed-methods study assesses the awareness of the stigmatization of Mexican Spanish in Southern California. It investigates bilingual speakers’ perceptions of certain Spanish forms in the area, like English borrowings and Mexican calques. The study’s pedagogical implications are emphasized, particularly in how Spanish programs often mistakenly treat U.S. Spanish forms as needing correction. We have published some of our results here.

A project in collaboration with Dr. Luz María Ede-Hernández at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater focusing on the sociolinguistic aspect of Caló, a social dialect from the Southwest region of the U.S. including the Mexican border region. The study analyzes how the resurgence of Caló in various sectors reflects masculine border identity and social resistance.

This is a collaborative project with Dr. María Angélica Castro Caballero and Dr. Cynthia Mendoza Casanova from the Autonomous University of Baja California, Mexicali Campus / Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Campus Mexicali (UABC). It’s an innovative initiative creating permanent links between UC Riverside and UABC, exploring the acquisition and development of academic communication skills in Spanish for Deaf and Hard of Hearing university students in the border region.

Expands on current research in Critical Sociocultural Linguistic Literacy (CriSoLL) for the Language classroom. It aims to develop more inclusive teaching methodologies, moving away from traditional models that focus solely on standard language acquisition. Learn more about CriSoLL here, and here.

An interdisciplinary initiative and collaboration by Claudia Holguín Mendoza and Jorge Leal at UC Riverside, and Julie Weise at the University of Oregon. This project incorporates bilingualism throughout new and existing courses. This project aims to affirm the identities of Latinx students and broaden their engagement with historical, political, and cultural texts. Learn more about this project here, and here.