Current Graduate Students

Mia Hickey

(amelia.hickey@uconn.edu)

Mia Hickey is a first-year MA student with El Instituto's Latin American Studies program. She holds a bachelor's degree in Sociology and Spanish, and a minor in Latin American Studies from the University of Connecticut. She has an interest in furthering her current scholarship in the field of human rights, specifically focusing on human trafficking.

Adrian Chavarria

(qte25002@uconn.edu)

Adrian Chavarria completed his BA in Political Science with a focus on international relations from Lipscomb University, where he also double majored in Urban Leadership and Policy. Adrian moved to the U.S. in 2015, originally born and raised in Honduras; his research has focused on the colonization of Honduras and the barriers to democratic consolidation in the same. In his most recent research project, he analyzed the necessary conditions for the success of social revolutions in 20th-century Latin America. His research interests also encompass the intersections of democracy, foreign policy, human rights, international conflict and law, and urban studies. In his free time, Adrian enjoys listening to music, watching movies and dramas, drinking café con pan dulce, drawing, and hanging out with friends.

Beatriz Torres Do Nascimento

(lvh25003@uconn.edu)

Beatriz Torres holds a B.A. in Social Sciences from the Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP), with a specialization and published work in sociology that examines the cultural identity of Pernambuco, in Northeastern Brazil, through the musical group Nação Zumbi. During her undergraduate studies, she also pursued training in teaching, which led her to teach ethics, social studies, and sociology at both middle and high school levels. Currently serving as a Teaching Assistant and Research Assistant, she has redirected her focus to academia while maintaining a strong commitment to producing knowledge with social applicability. Her research interests include Latin American immigration, with particular attention to how intersectional factors shape individual immigrant experiences. Additionally, she seeks to explore the plurality of Brazilian identities and critically analyze their position within the broader Latinx community.

Julien Torrento

(oyw25001@uconn.edu)

Julien Torrento holds a BA in Hispanic Languages and Literature from Stony Brook University, as well as an Associates in Communication Arts from Nassau Community College. Their undergraduate research primarily concentrated on the way dissident latine bodies use trans/parency as a means of survival and affirmation. Their research interests that are being fostered through El Instituto include memory and respectability politics within the cuir community, alongside music and performance serving as a means of archival work.

Ben Aranda de Planque

(tgx24001@uconn.edu)

Ben Aranda de Planque (they/them/elle) is a first-year M.A. student at El Instituto. They hold a B.A. in Theatre and Latin American Studies from the University of Central Florida. Their research interests lie within Queer Latine culture, Latine theatre, and examining the intersectionality of identity politics.

Javier Garcia

(zag24001@uconn.edu)

Javier J. García Quiñones is a political scientist specializing in international relations, human rights, and social movements. He completed his B.A. in Political Science with a minor in Human Rights at the University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus. During his undergraduate years, he engaged in impactful research, including his work with the Puerto Rican Public Opinion Laboratory (LabPOP), and developed expertise in analyzing public opinion data and international legal frameworks. His research interests have focused on how indigenous groups leverage international legal frameworks to assert their rights. He aims to deepen his research on non-state actors and indigenous social movements in Latin America, continuing his focus on how these groups utilize international law to influence political narratives.

Maria Isabel Palacio-Cano

(maria.palacio_cano@uconn.edu)

M. Isabel Palacio-Cano had a B.A. in Pedagogy from the University of Antioquia (Medellin, Colombia). She is a preschool teacher and primary school teacher. Her research interest is in the areas of Cultural studies, Critical Public Pedagogy, Adult learning, Colombian Conflict, and Interdisciplinary Research in Education.

Jhinia Garcia

(jhinia.garcia@uconn.edu)

Jhinia Garcia graduated from the Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos (UNMSM, Peru) with a B.A. in Economics. She also got an M.A. in Public Administration from the Universidad San Martin de Porres (USMP, Peru). Previously, she worked as an Analyst in Planning and Budget for Ministerio de Defensa del Perú (MINDEF) and the Organismo Supervisor de la Inversión en Infraestructura de Transporte de Uso Público (OSITRAN). Also, she worked as a Research Assistant in the Marketing Group of the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. Her research interests are Behavioral Economics, Health Economics, and Education (relationship between teaching methodologies and motivation).

Crystal Elescano

(crystal.elescano@uconn.edu)

Crystal Elescano (she/her/ella) has a B.A. in Journalism from the University of Connecticut, and second-year student at El Institutos M.A. program in International Studies. She is currently a bilingual reporter for the Meriden Record-Journal's Latino Communities Reporting Lab where she focuses on the Latino community in Meriden and surrounding areas—covering businesses, issues, traditions, etc. Her interests focus on los desaparecidos, political corruption, and terrorism in Latin America.

El Instituto: Institute of Latina/o, Caribbean, and Latin American Studies

2025-27