Research Opportunities

The Center for Latino and Latin American Studies serves as NIU's home for the interdisciplinary study of Latin America, the Caribbean and the Latinx experience in the United States. CLLAS supports the research and scholarship of 27 faculty associates who come from a range of disciplinary backgrounds, including history, sociology, anthropology, geology, foreign languages and literature, music, education and law. Together with graduate and undergraduate students, our Faculty Associates engage in research projects that contribute significantly to the fields of Latinx and Latin American Studies.

NIU Latinx Oral History Project

Established by CLLAS in 2014, the NIU Latinx Oral History Project documents the lives and experiences of Latinxs in the Midwest. The collection currently holds 128 interviews (audio and video recordings and transcriptions) with NIU faculty, students, and staff, undocumented migrants, community activists and leaders, and other Latinxs in the region. Many of the interviews have focused on family, identity formation, Latinx social and political organizing, and the difficulties faced by the undocumented in the United States. Interviews continue to be collected by NIU faculty as well as undergraduate and graduate students. Many of the students who work on the NIU Latinx Oral History Project receive funding to support their research, thanks, in part, to participation in SROP. Interviews have been deposited to the Regional History Archive at NIU's Founders Memorial Library and are open to researchers for consultation.

Inter-University Program for Latino Research (IUPLR)

In 2017, CLLAS became a member of the Inter-University Program for Latino Research, the leading consortium of university-based research centers researching Latino issues.

Other NIU Research Opportunities

We encourage our students to be involved in research opportunities via the Office of Student Engagement and Experiential Learning (OSEEL). Please read about what exactly is undergraduate research and why it is important. Then take a look at all of the programs they offer for you to get involved in showcase your important work:

Freshman

Upperclassman

Contact Us

Center for Latino and Latin American Studies
Northern Illinois University
515 Garden Rd.
DeKalb, IL 60115
815-753-1531
latinostudies@niu.edu

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