Born of student advocacy in the late 1970s, Northern Illinois University’s Center for Latino and Latin American Studies (CLLAS) serves as the principal intellectual hub for showcasing the voice of, and creating dialogue around, Latinx issues on campus. This role is increasingly important as Latinx students now make up 25% of NIU’s total enrollment, putting us on the cusp of becoming a Hispanic Serving Institution. 

Academic Programs and Student Support

CLLAS serves as a home for the interdisciplinary study of the Latino experience in the United States as well as Latin America and the Caribbean. Our curricular offerings include an undergraduate minor and a graduate certificate, supported by courses in the humanities, arts, and social sciences and 30 faculty associates from across campus. Last spring, we enrolled 105 students in the Latino and Latin American Studies minor, a 57% increase from the previous year. Additionally, seven students have completed the graduate certificate in Latin American Studies since its creation in 2019.  

Academic offerings are enhanced by our academic and cultural programming and community outreach activities. We meet our students where they are, in partnership with units across campus, to provide programs that allow them to build a sense of community and celebrate and explore their culture. We partner frequently with other academic units on campus as well as units in Academic Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, including the Latino Resource Centers and the Undocumented Students Resource Center.  

Community-building is a collaborative effort – ranging from street fairs and art and musical events to scholarly lectures and the Latinx Living-Learning Community (LLLC), a partnership between CLLAS, Housing and Residential Services, and the Latino Resource Center. The LLLC was named a Program to Watch as part of Excelencia in Education’s 2024 Examples of Excelencia for its growing, positive impact on Latino student success. Students in the living-learning community are required to take courses that are part of the Latino and Latin American Studies minor while also engaging in activities that help create a sense of belonging. These students also achieved higher grade point averages compared to students in a non-learning community and were retained at 10% higher than the general college population from their first year to their second year. 

Research as our Central Mission

Our flagship research project, the NIU Latinx Oral History Project, was launched in 2014 to document, disseminate, and better understand the lives and experiences of Latinxs in the Midwest. The collection currently holds close to 300 interviews (audio and video recordings and transcriptions) with NIU faculty, students, staff, and alumni; undocumented migrants; community activists and organizers; healthcare workers; and other Latinxs in the region. Many interviews have focused on family, identity formation, Latinx social and political organizing, and the difficulties undocumented Latinx youth face in the Midwest. In 2020, CLLAS partnered with the Voces Oral History Center at the University of Texas at Austin to create the Voces of a Pandemic Oral History Project, which captured the experiences of Latinxs affected by the Covid-19 crisis. Most recently, CLLAS received a $348,000 award from the National Endowment for the Humanities to preserve and digitize the entire collection with our partners in NIU Libraries.  

Showcasing the vibrancy of the Latinx Studies and Latin American Studies fields is the purpose behind Treinta y tres, an annual interdisciplinary research conference now in its sixth year. Past conferences have explored topics such as U.S. Latinx politics; the role of race, racism and blackness in shaping (Afro-)Latin American and (Afro-)Latinx history, culture and experiences; and sustainability and environmental justice. This year’s Treinta y tres, to be held on November 21-22, 2024, will focus on Latinx oral histories and celebrate the 10th Anniversary of the NIU Latinx Oral History Project. Historian Lilian Fernández of the University of Illinois at Chicago will serve as  the conference’s keynote speaker.  

Studying Abroad

CLLAS also works to offer students international travel abroad experiences. In collaboration with colleagues in Spanish and Geology/Environmental Studies, we recently organized a summer trip to the Yucatán region of Mexico centered on the exploration of Mayan culture and eco-tourism. Eight students spent 10 days experiencing the Yucatan’s food, culture, and geography as we travelled to Puerto Morelos, Chichén Itzá, Merida, and the island of Holbox. Together with colleagues at the Center for Nonprofit and NGO Studies, we are planning a trip to Havana, Cuba, for next semester that will allow students to attend lectures, visit religious and cultural institutions, and learn from experts belonging to the island’s renowned disaster risk reduction programs. These transformative opportunities allow students to experience other cultures and return to campus with a greater enthusiasm for learning.  

Future Growth 

In the coming years, CLLAS plans to expand its curricular offerings with certificate programs in Latinx Studies and Latin American Studies and begin exploring the development of a major in Latino and Latin American Studies. Additionally, CLLAS is working to strengthen its connections with alumni through collaborations with the Latino Alumni Council, beginning this year with a Homecoming event – De Vuelta a Casa – inviting alumni to return to campus to share photographs, memorabilia, and other artifacts from their college days. Together with its faculty, staff, students, alumni, and community partners, CLLAS will continue to grow and solidify its presence on campus and in the region as a leader in the fields of Latino and Latin American Studies.  

About the author

Christina D. Abreu is an associate professor of history and director of the Center for Latino and Latin American Studies at Northern Illinois University. She published Rhythms of Race: Cuban Musicians and the Making of Latino New York City and Miami, 1940-1960, in 2015 with the University of North Carolina Press.  

References 

NIU Center for Latino and Latin American Studies - https://www.niu.edu/clas/latino-studies/index.shtml 

NIU Latinx Living-Learning Community - https://www.niu.edu/housing/halls/communities/latinx/index.shtml  

NIU Latinx Oral History Project - https://www.niu.edu/clas/latino-studies/academics/latinx-history-project.shtml  

Voces of the Pandemic Oral History Project - https://voces.lib.utexas.edu/voces-pandemic  

Latinx Oral History Project receives NEH grant during its 10-year anniversary - https://niutoday.info/2024/07/16/latinx-oral-history-project-receives-neh-grant-during-its-10-year-anniversary/