Connect with CLACS
About CLACS
The Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies (CLACS) serves students, faculty and scholars from across the University of Illinois campus, along with communities across Illinois and the Midwest, by promoting innovative research, specialist teaching, and public awareness of the Latin American and Caribbean region. CLACS is a designated National Resource Center for the 2022-2026 period, supported by the Department of Education under Title VI funding.
- On November 11th and 12th, the Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies (CLACS) and the Lemann Center for Brazilian Studies at the University of Illinois held a special conference to honor the contributions of Professors Werner Baer and Geoffrey Hewings to the Center’s legacy. Through their... Read full story Event Recap: Celebrating the Legacy of Professors Werner Baer and Geoffrey Hewings – A Seminar on Latin America's Future Challenges
- The Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies (CLACS) is excited to announce the call for applications for the 2025 Summer Graduate Research Fellowships. These fellowships are designed to support graduate students in the early stages of dissertation research through... Read full story Call for Summer Graduate Research Fellowships (SGF)
- Last month, the LAC Cities Collective kicked off its 2024-2025 Speaker Series with an extraordinary visit from Dr. Bjørn Sletto, Professor of Community and Regional Planning at the University of Texas at Austin. This event, led by faculty members—Prof. Magdalena Novoa (Urban Planning), Prof.... Read full story Recap of Dr. Bjørn Sletto's Visit: Launching the 2024-2025 LAC Cities Collective Speaker Series
Prof. Cristobal Bianchi’s Award-Winning Micro Film "Weathered by the Sun" (Desteñidos por el Sol) Shines Bright at the Austin International Art Festival
Congratulations to Professor Cristobal Bianchi from the Studio Art department at UIUC, for his remarkable achievement in winning the "Best Micro Short award at the Austin International Art Festival 2024". This project was brought to life through a collaboration with Prof. Victor Font from the College of Media at UIUC, Prof. Marco Trevisiani from the School of Art & Design at UIUC, and Poetry Translator Elizabeth Zuba. The voices of poets Alejandra del Río, Mariana Camelio, Gabriela Paz Morales...
Upcoming Events
CLACS at Illinois Facebook
LAST 170: Que Pasa in Latin America? Cultures, Histories and Politics South of the Rio Grande.
Introduction to Latin America offers an interdisciplinary introduction to the ways of life of Latin American peoples, their origins, historical legacies, and current cultural expressions.
QUEC 410, CRN 77348: Beginner Quechua 1
An introduction to the largest indigenous language family of the Americas. This course focuses on the Southern Quechua variety, spoken from southern Peru through Bolivia, up to northern Argentina.
LAST 210, CRN 78201: Life in the Andes
An overview of contemporary Andean culture, as practiced by the people in Peru, Bolivia, and Ecuador.
LAST 395: Archaeology Field School in Peru
This course is an archaeological field school where students will have the opportunity to engage in innovative original research at the archaeological site of Cerro Blanco, a Chancay Administrative Center located in central Peru.
REL 511: The Jewish Atlantic
The course will cover quite a bit of material on Jewish history and culture in the Caribbean after 1500, including Suriname, Barbados, and Jamaica. The course will also engage theory and historiography as it related to the Atlantic as a scholarly lens more broadly.
ArtH / LAST 343: Arts of Modern Latin America
This course is an introduction to the major, critical debates concerning the visual cultures of Latin America from the early years of independence through contemporary creations and performances
Law 657: International Human Rights Law
Based primarily on a series of contemporary “real world” problems, the course introduces the student to the established and developing legal rules and procedures governing the protection of international human rights.
ARCH 490: Special Topics in Contemporary Architecture section GS (CRN 77300) Gender, Space & Critical Spatial Practice.
This seminar-workshop introduces students to diverse manifestations of feminist liberation movements from the Americas and the Caribbean, focusing on decolonial feminism, mutual aid, and community as forms of rebellion.
ARCH 403: Special Topics in Arch History section CN (CRN 77318)
Counter-Narratives of Architecture: Thinking Architectural History from/with the Americas and the Caribbean. This course challenges the dominant narratives of modern architecture, which often overlook the impact of colonialism, imperialism, and neocolonialism—factors central to discussions in fields like art and literature.
ANTH 405 - Contemporary Central America
Explores cultural, political and historical processes in 20th- and 21st-century Central America--focusing on Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala--through an anthropological lens.