Three Latin American Studies and Spanish seniors presented their final, culminating projects together with the three French seniors who gave their Capstone presentations on April 28. Pictured here are the six senior presenters: (left to right) Roux Fernandez, Kimberly Diaz, Sabah Bashi, Christophe Cogerino, Ella Cogerino, and Catherine Boudreaux flanked by Spanish/LAS professor Dr. Pablo Zavala (left) and French professor, Dr. Stacey Battis (right).
Here is the complete Capstone program listing the six students who participated this year and the titles of their projects.
Latin American Studies and sociology major Sasha Solano-McDaniel knew her final research project for her History of Food in America class last fall would be uploaded on Loyola University’s Documentary and Oral History Studio website, but she didn’t know it would be so well received by Loyola’s Languages and Cultures Department. Says Solano-McDaniel of the project, “Our task was to create an article stemming from a historical menu in 1930’s America.” The result was an historical look at the formation of Mexican-American cuisine.
Seven new members of the Spanish Honor Society, Sigma Delta Pi, were inducted into the honor society on April 26. Several Spanish and Latin American Studies professors were on hand at the ceremony as well.
Pictured from left to right are:
Dr. Pablo Zavala, Dr. Andrea Gaytan (initiate), Prof. Angela Ramirez, Sabah Bashi, Christopher Bowlin, Dr. Isabel Durocher (Chapter Advisor), Nicholas Burtchaell, Kaliah Rodgers, Sierra O’Brien, Alanna Olsen, and officers Vairleene Einstein and Kimberly Diaz.
LAS alumna Shoshana Shattenkirk is writing the music for her musical, "Fever Dreams," which is about pandemics and started as part of an invitation from the New York Public Library to create musicals based on materials in its archives. Shattenkirk collaborated with a lyricist and book writer to create the musical based on the correspondence of a doctor during the Yellow Fever pandemic of 1798. A draft of the first portion of the musical was performed virtually and is on The New York Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center website.
Courtney Graves, 2018 graduate with a double major in Latin American Studies and Strategic Communications/Public Relations, was awarded a prestigious Fulbright research grant to Brazil. Her research will study women's networking. Congratulations, Courtney! We are so proud of you!
More information in the summer edition of Loyno Magazine, p. 6
Dr. Jean X. Brager gave a presentation with students from his First-Year Seminar (Fall 2018, Performance & Performativity) on 1/25/19 in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr., week.
Karen Rosenbecker, Ph.D., received the Rev. Emmett M. Bienvenue, S.J. Distinguished Professorship in Classical Studies in March 2019. The award was established in 2013 in honor of Fr. Bienvenu, a professor of classical studies who taught for nearly 40 years at Loyola University New Orleans. Congratulations, Dr. Rosenbecker!
Here is a list of the 6 students that were initiated in February 2019 into the Mu Kappa Chapter of the national Spanish honor society Sigma Delta Pi:
Danielle Belmont, senior majoring in Spanish and Sociology, and minoring in Latin American Studies, has been selected to work with Teach for America beginning in Fall 2019. She will be teaching elementary special education in the greater New Orleans area. ¡Enhorabuena, Danielle! We are so proud of you!
Darius Smith (Spanish 2017) is a Spanish teacher at Thomas Jefferson High School for Advanced Studies in Gretna, LA. ¡Enhorabuena, Darius!