Department of Puerto Rican and Hispanic Caribbean Studies, Faculty of Arts and Sciences

Web Site: http://latcar.rutgers.edu

Acting Chairperson: Asela R. Laguna

Professor:

Asela R. Laguna, B.A., Puerto Rico; M.A., Ph.D., Illinois (Urbana)

Assistant Professor:

Ana Yolanda Ramos-Zayas, B.A., Yale; M.A., Ph.D., Columbia

Assistant Instructors:

Yanet Baldares, B.A., M.A., Ph.D., Rutgers

Ismael Garcia Colon, B.A., Puerto Rico; M.A., Ph.D., Connecticut (Storrs)

The Department of Puerto Rican and Hispanic Caribbean Studies offers an interdisciplinary program of studies that examines the diverse political, social, and cultural histories of the Spanish-speaking societies of the Caribbean as well as Latino communities in the United States. Using a comparative approach, the curriculum focuses on the formation and evolution of the peoples and societies of the region. Courses examine the gender, racial, class, and cultural dimensions of the migration experience of Caribbean peoples and the reformulation of national identities.

The curriculum fosters critical thinking about how knowledge is created, different methods and modes of analysis, and the limitations of traditional disciplinary approaches. It does so while developing competencies in research, analysis, and written as well as oral presentations.