Find your path in Latina/Latino Studies
Community Resources
- Education professor Rochelle Gutiérrez has been named to the National Academy of Education. A professor of curriculum and instruction and of mathematics education, Gutiérrez challenges deficit views of racial minority students and believes that teachers must have more than pedagogical or content knowledge to be successful. An Illinois faculty member since 1996, Gutiérrez also holds appointments in Latino/Latina Studies and the Carl R. Woese... Read full story LLS affiliate professor Rochelle Gutiérrez named to National Academy of Education
- As an oral historian, Illinois history professor, Yuridia “Yuri” Ramírez records the stories of people who have never been written about in history books. “These people have, in some ways, made the most impactful legacies in their communities, and people don’t know who they are,” Ramírez said. Through the ... Read full story Humanities Research Lab courses provide community based research education: Spotlight on LLS affiliate professor Yuridia Ramírez' oral history methods class
- LLS and anthropology alumna Teresa Ramos (BA, ’04; MA, ’08; PhD, ’12; anthropology with a minor in Latina/Latino studies) has been named the first secretary of the Illinois Department of Early Childhood (IDEC). Ramos is currently the first assistant deputy governor for education in Governor JB Pritzker’s office. Pending state Senate approval, Ramos will begin her new role in January and the department will be fully operational by the summer of... Read full story LLS and anthropology alumna Teresa Ramos named first secretary of Illinois Department of Early Childhood
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Why Study Latina/Latino Studies?
Professor Mirelsie Velázquez shares the value of the major, favorite spots in Champaign-Urbana, and why the Latina/Latino studies department is the best kept secret on campus in an interview with the College of LAS.
Upcoming events

Alumni spotlight: LLS and anthropology alumna Teresa Ramos, (BA, ’04; MA, ’08; PhD, ’12), first secretary of the Illinois Department of Early Childhood
LLS and anthropology alumna Teresa Ramos (BA, ’04; MA, ’08; PhD, ’12; anthropology with a minor in Latina/Latino studies) has been named the first secretary of the Illinois Department of Early Childhood (IDEC). Ramos is currently the first assistant deputy governor for education in Governor JB Pritzker’s office. Pending state Senate approval, Ramos will begin her new role in January and the department will be fully operational by the summer of 2026. The department combines programs currently overseen by several other state agencies including oversight and funding of preschool programs and...

Faculty spotlight: Natalie Lira
Natalie Lira is an interdisciplinary scholar who examines the politics of reproduction and histories of medicine in the United States. Her research interests include the politics of reproduction, histories of medicine, and the ways that struggles for racial and reproductive justice intersect.