Welcome to the NEW website of the Southern California Chapter of the American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese

Nancy Ballesteros -President        Loknath Persaud -Treasurer

David Zarazúa - Webmaster     Marcela Rojas and Bibiana Díaz -Members at large

Thank you Pasadena City College!

The SoCal Chapter of the AATSP  would like to thank Pasadena City College for welcoming us this past April 12 for our 2025 Spring Conference. Thank you to all the presenters and to professors Olga González and Loknath Persaud in particular for leading the plenary discussion on the current situation of language education at the post secondary level. Click here to see the program.

Be the Change! Start a Sociedad Hispánica de Amistad (SHA) Chapter at Your School! 

Are you passionate about promoting cultural understanding and making a difference in your school and community? Here’s your chance! We invite teachers in elementary, middle, and 9th grade high school to sponsor a Sociedad Hispánica de Amistad (SHA) chapter. SHA provides students with the opportunity to become ambassadors of the Hispanic culture through engaging activities, school events, and community service projects.

By sponsoring a chapter, you'll inspire students to embrace cultural diversity, develop leadership skills, and give back to their communities. Let’s work together to build a welcoming, inclusive environment where students can shine as global citizens!

Ready to inspire the next generation of cultural ambassadors? Start your SHA chapter today! More information here: https://www.aatsp.org/page/SHA

Thank you MSMU for a great conference!

The Southern California Chapter of the AATSP would like to thank Mount St. Mary´s University (Chalon Campus) for welcoming us this past Saturday, November 16, for our FALL 2024 Conference. Also thank you to Dr. Cristina Moon for the inspiring plenary speech. Please see the program for the conference here. 

Mount Saint Mary´s U. welcomed us this Fall 2023

Thank you to Mount Saint Mary´s University-LA for welcoming us for our Fall 2023 Conference and thanks to Dr. Krishauna Hines-Gaither, Vice President for Equity, Diversity and Justice, also of MSMU, for giving the plenary presentation. You can see the full program here. We also would like to congratulate Nancy Ballesteros and Vernice Grajeda who will be the new President and Vice-President of out chapter. 

Thank you CSU Northridge

We would thank the Department of Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures at CSU Northridge for welcoming for our 2023 Spring Conference. Thank you also to the presenters who shared their work  on pedagogy, literature, and cinema. The conference took place this Saturday, April 29 and you can read the program for the conference here. Thank you in CSUN!

Thank you Pasadena City College! 

We would like to thank Pasadena City College for welcoming us for our Fall 2022 Meeting. The hybrid meeting took place Saturday, October 22, 2022. We would also like to thank Domnita Dumitrescu, Álvaro Ramírez, César Vallejo and Karen Pérez for their emotive tributes to professors James Parr and Alfonso González. Please click here to view the program for the conference. 

Spring 2021 Virtual conference of the SO/Cal chapter 

The Southern California Chapter of the AATSP held its second virtual conference this past April 24, 2021. The conference had Gloria Itzel Montiel, Ph.D., as the plenary speaker who gave the presentation titled "Abriendo caminos de equidad." You can view the program and the instructions to access the presentation here. 

So/Cal Chapter Fall 2020 VIRTUAL Conference 10/17/2020

This past October 17, 2020, the Southern California Chapter of the AATSP successfully organized its first virtual conference due to on-going COVID-19 concerns. We would like to thank Fabiola García Rubio, consul from the General Consulate of Mexico in Los Angeles for her plenary presentation titled "El español, la historia y la cultura en Los Ángeles en el Consulado de México". Thanks you also to all the presenters and moderators. Having the conference via Zoom allowed attendees and presenters to come from as far away as Mexico and Bolivia. You can see the program here.  

Thank you for participating at the 2019 Fall Meeting at USC!

We would like to thank all the presenters, attendees, and organizers for the great meeting we had at USC  this past November 9, 2019. Professor Claudia Holguín Mendoza (UC Riverside) gave a very interesting plenary ("Critical Language Awareness and Agency in Spanish Heritage Language Education") and Professor Gloria Arjona beautifully presented a multimedia show on soldaderas during the Mexican Revolution. Click here for a copy of the program. You can read an article by Nathan Masters on the presentation The USC Posada Project: Teaching Spanish Language, Mexican Culture, and Primary Source Literacy given by Karen Howell, Barbara Robinson, Consuelo Sigüenza-Ortiz & Liana Stepanyan (USC) here. Finally, we would like to thank our sponsors, the USC Department of Latin American and Iberian Cultures and the USC Language Center.

Professor Dumitrescu receives Lifetime Achievement Award at AATSP conference in San Diego

Our very own Professor Domnita Dumitrescu received the Lifetime Achievement Award at AATSP 101 Annual Meeting in San Diego, CA this past July. Congratulations Domnita!

Professor Amy Williamsen passes away

We would like to share the sad news about the untimely passing of Prof. Amy Willamsen this last April 22. Prof. Williamsen, who did her doctoral work at USC under Dr. Parr, worked at Occidental College and at the University of Arizona, where he became a full professor. After leaving the University of Arizona as professor emerita, she became the chair of the Dept. of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Having published several books on Golden Age literature, Professor Williamson will be remembered for her scholarly contributions, her generosity, her warmth and effervescence. Professor Jim Parr, who has been her dissertation director and colleague, wrote this brief note remembering her.

Thank you for joining us at the 2019 Spring Meeting of our chapter and thank you to PCC!

We would like to thank all our colleagues that the 2019 Spring Meeting of our chapter Saturday, April 6. Special thanks to our friends at Pasadena City College for organizing such a great meeting and to distinguished Professor Emeritus of Spanish at UCR and Golden Age specialist,  Dr. Jim Parr for giving the keynote speech "Now.... About Literature..." You can find the complete program here. 

Great 2018 Fall Meeting in UC Santa Barbara

The Southern California Chapter of the AATSP woud like to thank the  Department of Spanish and Portuguese at UC Santa Barbaraits for organizing the 2018 Fall Meeting this past October 27 .  Thank you also to professor Eve Zyzik from UC Santa Cruz who gave who gave a very well received keynote speach ("¿Por qué y para qué enseñar gramática: Nuevas perspectivas sobre algunos problemas clásicos del español"). Click here for the program of the meeting.

Thank you Azusa Pacific!

The chapter would like to thank Azusa Pacific University and its Department of Modern Languages for welcoming us this past April 21 for our 2018 Spring Meeting. The keynote presentation by Dr. Laura Marqués-Pascual, Language Program Director at the Dept. of Spanish and Portuguese, UC Santa Barbara, and the rest of the presentations proved to be estimulating and rewarding. You can see the full program here.

Professors Dumitrescu and Andueza interviewed about new book on L2 pragmatics

Thank you CSUN!

The Southern California Chapter of the AATSP would like to thank California State University, Northridge for welcoming us this past October 28 for our Fall 2017 Meeting. Thank you to Tom Beeman for his plenary presentation and to the other presenters. You can see the PROGRAM here.

QUINTO CONCURSO ANUAL DE DELETREO EN ESPAÑOL

El Quinto concurso anual de deletreo en español para escuelas secundarias se realizó con éxito el pasado 15 de abril en el Wilden Lecture Hall de Azusa Pacific University (APU). Participaron un total de 19 escuelas de distintos distritos escolares del centro y sur de California. Rodrigo Amaya, de Perris High School, obtuvo el primer puesto; Rosemarie Giron Haiyan, de Quarz Hill High School, el segundo puesto; y Tania López, de Gladstone High School, el tercer puesto.

Pocas horas más tarde, como ya es tradicional, un numeroso grupo de niños de escuelas primarias realizaron también su propio Concurso de Deletreo. El objetivo de estos concursos anuales, organizados por la prof. Marcela Rojas, de APU, y un equipo de profesores universitarios y de secundaria, es promover el estudio de la lengua española en los niveles primarios y secundarios para animar a los estudiantes a continuar dicho aprendizaje en la universidad. Este año los jueces del concurso para escuelas secundarias fueron David Zarazúa, de USC; Paola Andrea Gómez, de Glendale Community College; Michel Pereira, de APU y Eduard Lucas Caba, de Cal Poly Pomona.

A big thank you to Santa Monica Community College!

The Southern California Chapter of the AATSP would like to thank Santa Monica Community College and Professor Alejandro Lee of the Department of Modern Language and Cultures for welcoming us this past April 22, 2017. Thank you also to Professor María M. Carreira Co-director of the National Heritage Language Resource Center at UCLA and Professor of Spanish at California State Long Beach for giving the keynote address. Click here for the complete program of our meeting. Finally, we will like to express our most sincere gratitude professors Margarita López and Amàlia Llombart for being our president and vice-president the last two years. After holding elections, Professor Llombart was elected the new president and professor Adrián Pérez Boluda will function as vicepresident.

2016 Fall Meeting of the Southern California Chapter of AATSP

The Southern California Chapter of the AATSP would like to thank Loyola Marymount University for organizing our 2016 Fall Meeting on November 12, 2016. You can see the program here.Thank you LMU!

April 23rd 2016 AATSP-SoCal Spring Meeting!

After a very successful spring conference last fall at CSU Channel Islands, this Spring meeting was scheduled at Cal Poly Pomona and organized by the vice-president, Dr. Amàlia Llombart. The more than sixty attendees were welcomed by Dr. Liliane Fucaloro—Chair of the English and Foreign Languages department—and Dr. Isabel Bustamante, Coordinator of the Foreign Languages Program, while they partook of a continental breakfast. They then attended the Plenary Session, facilitated by the renowned Italian neurolinguist Dr. Eleonora Rossi, who spoke about the complexity of second language learning and its neurological benefits. After the well-received plenary session, attendees went to the simultaneous sessions on language and literature, which lasted until late in the afternoon. During lunch, Stella Manley—Cal Poly Pomona alumna and Spanish instructor—received a recognition for her loyal support of the AATSP-SoCal conferences. Attendees also enjoyed the exhibits of an undergraduate poster session and contest, as well as a lively discussion with the posters’ authors. The students Alicia Ayala and Galia Alba were the recipients of the undergraduate research poster contest award in the areas of literature and linguistics, respectively.

Many thanks to the Dean of the College of Letters, Arts and Social Sciences, Dr. Sharon Hilles, and to the Chair of the Department of English and Foreign Languages, Dr. Liliane Fucaloro, for sponsoring and supporting the conference. Also, many thanks to the wonderful students of the Spanish Language Association and DePie for the extraordinary help in organizing this conference.

Our next conference will be at Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles, on November 12!

  1.  2.  3.   4.   5.

1. Dr. Eleonora Rossi, plenary speaker.

2. Students of the Spanish Language Association and DePie take a lunch break from their hard work assisting to every detail in the organization of the conference.

3. Dr. Isabel Bustamante and Dr. Llombart give a well-deserved recognition to Stella Manley for her loyal support to the AATSP-SoCal.

4. Lively discussion during the poster session

5. Galia Alba and Alicia Ayala, recipients of the Undergraduate Student Poster Contest Award, next to their faculty mentors, Dr. Llombart and Dr. Albalá.

AATSP Southern California Chapter Fall 2015 Meeting : Thank you CSU Channel Islands!

The Southern California Chapter of the AATSP would like to thank the Department of Spanish, the Office of Student Life, the John Spoor Broome Libraray, and the Student Research Steering Council at the CSU Channel Island for the successful organization of the Fall 2015 Meeting of our chapter. Also thank you to the Mexican Consulate in Oxnard, to Vista Higher Learning, and to CENGAGE Learning for their contributions. You can see the program of the meeting here.  

Thank you University of La Verne for a great Spring Meeting!   

The Southern California Chapter of the AATSP would like to express its gratitude to the University of La Verne for organizing the Spring Meeting of the chapter this past April 25, 2015. You can take a look at the impressive program of presentations that were given that day.

Great Fall Meeting of the Southern California Chapter of AATSP at USC, October 25, 2014 

Our 2014 Fall Meeting at the University of Southern California was a huge success! We had an emotive homage to USC Professor Emerita Carmen Silva Corvalán and an excellent plenary presentation by Professor Comfort Pratt from Texas Tech University. Attendees were able to participate in a series of very interesting presentations and workshops (see program here) and they also had the opportunity to catch up with colleagues and old friends during lunch. Thanks to the Department of Spanish and Portuguese, Vista Higher Learning, Cengage Learning, the Department of Modern Languages at Azusa Pacific University, the Embajada de España, and the Phi Omicron Chapter of Sigma Delta Pi.

Thank you Pasadena City College for organizing the Spring 2014 Conference 

Pasadena City College organized a very successful meeting of our chapter on Saturday, April 26. See the PROGRAM here. Thanks for allowing us to visit your campus and having a very productive and informative meeting.

Fall Meeting of the SoCal Chapter of AATSP. October 26, 2013 at UCLA  was huge success

The Southern California chapter of the AATSP would like to thank Professor Claudia Parodi and all her collaborators at UCLA for helping us in the organization of a very succesfull meeting this past October 26, 2013. Approximately 100 people attended the meeting and 80 of them were able to stay with us for lunch. Professor Fernando Rubio from the University of Utah gave a very well received plenary presentation titled "Going Beyond the Flipped Classroom in World Languages," you can find his presentation here. To see the program, click here.

¡Ganamos! The Southern California Chapter of the AATSP is the 2013 recipient of the Chapter of the Year Award

The Southern California Chapter of the AATSP is the 2013 recipient of the Chapter of the Year Award presented by the American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese. The AATSP Awards Selection Committee found the chapter credentials to be outstanding.As the recipient of this award, your chapter will receive a certificate and the check for $500 at the Awards Banquet of the 2013 AATSP conference in San Antonio, Texas. Thanks to all the people and institutions who have supported this past year and have made this possible.