Contributed by professor Beatriz Aldana Marquez. I remember the first time I did not belong. I was five years old, fresh from a long and terrifying journey into the United States, standing in front of a typical classroom of American children, all smiling and eating ice cream without the burden of responsibility. At the time, […]

Contributed by undergraduate student Sol Ramirez.  I am happy to provide a summary of the expenses covered by El Instituto’s generous sponsorship of $200 for the Somos Uno Puppet Show. Your support made it possible for us to bring this celebration of Mexican and Latine culture to life through puppetry, music, poetry and dance. A […]

Contributed by graduate student Jhinia Garcia. My research focuses on understanding the structural determinants of health among Hispanic populations in the United States. Using national survey data and quantitative methods, I examine how socioeconomic conditions shape overall health through four key mediating pathways: access to healthcare, health behaviors, mental health, and physical health. In this […]

Contributed by graduate student Ivonne Cotorruelo. The fellowship funds were used to support transportation expenses related to my travel to the University of Tulane for Moving Media in the Americas, Conference, December 4, 5 and 6. Specifically, the funds covered the cost of my round-trip airline ticket and taxi transportation to and from the airport. […]

Contributed by graduate student Luis Palomino. My research focuses on spatial economics and regional development. I study local development economics using unstructured and structured data and machine learning methods. A key goal of my doctoral preparation is to build fine-grained measures of economic activity that can be linked to official statistics and applied across countries. […]

Contributed by graduate student Beatriz Torres Do Nascimento. I am very happy to have completed my initial research prospectus. At this stage, my research, entitled “From Brazil to the United States: The Reconfiguration of Privilege and Racial Identity among Brazilian Immigrants,” feels much clearer and more structured, which brings me a great sense of relief […]

Contributed by graduate student Michelle Miller. With the support of the El Instituto Pre-Doctoral Fellowship, I was able to center the lived experience of Latine1 UConn undergraduate students and complete the first phase of data collection for my dissertation research. My dissertation focuses on acculturative stress, which refers to the stress that occurs when navigating […]