Biography

Ana M. Lopez-Aguilera (Ph.D. Univ. Nebraska-Lincoln) studied Translation, Interpreting and Pedagogy in Málaga (Spain) and she obtained her Ph.D. in Spanish at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln with a dissertation on Spanish novelist Belén Gopegui. As Assistant Professor of Spanish at Utah Valley University (Orem, UT), she taught courses in Translation, Interpreting, Spanish for Healthcare, as well as courses in Spanish language and Hispanic Cinema. Also, she created the program of Spanish for the Professions and Translation, and designed and carried out assessment for the department of Languages and Cultures. In 2019, Dr. Lopez-Aguilera joined Bemidji State University (MN) where she teaches Spanish language and Hispanic Cultural Studies. She regularly incorporates high impact practices into her teaching. Her students engage in service learning activities, volunteering as interpreters for schools and translator for NGOs. Students engage in research activities in her courses and have presented their scholarly work in different events in collaboration with Dr. Lopez-Aguilera.

Her research and teaching interests focus on cultural products that show a strong civic commitment, environmental humanities, and translation and interpreting for the community. Her textbook Advanced Reading for Comprehension Workbook (in collaboration with Dr. Lola Lorenzo) creates and supports a pathway for Spanish students without previous literary knowledge to establish connections between literary readings, history and society. Dr. López-Aguilera has published literary and movie reviews in different journals, as well as teaching tips and activities on how to bring critical analysis of visual products and environmental topics into the Spanish language class. Her article on Gopegui´s political literature for children will soon be published in the journal Hispania, and her chapter on Spanish cinema on evictions and house insecurity will appear in a collective edition on narratives of the global recession in film and TV. Currently, she is working on an anthology in Spanish of ecofeminist texts by Latin American and Spanish authors.

Degrees

Ph.D., 2014, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Modern Languages and Literatures (Spanish)
Dissertation Title: Novela comprometida en el siglo XXI: caso de la novelística de Belén Gopegui
(Engaged novel in the 21st Century: case of Spanish author Belén Gopegui)
Advisor: Dr. Óscar Pereira Zazo

M.A., 2010, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Modern Languages and Literatures (Spanish)
Master Thesis: Cine e inmigración: espacios de inclusión y exclusión
(Cinema and Migrations: spaces of inclusion and exclusion)

M.A., 2009, University of Málaga, Spain, teaching Spanish as a Foreign Language
Master Thesis: “Propuesta didáctica de Instrucción Dual/Bilingüe”
(“Teaching Proposal for a Dual Language/Bilingual Program”)

Pedagogical Competence Certificate (English), 2005, University of Málaga, Spain
Practicum: student teaching at High School “Jesús Marín”

B.A., 2000, University of Málaga, Spain, Translation and Interpretation (English)
Linguistics (General and Applied), Translation & Interpretation Methodology, Terminology, Specialized Translation in areas of Law, Science and Business.

Teaching

Bemidji State University: 2019-present

• SPAN 1112 Elementary Spanish II
• SPAN 2211 Intermediate Spanish I
• SPAN 3320 La Telenovela: Spanish through soap operas.

Additional Courses prior to BSU

• Beginning Spanish I (first semester)
• Intermediate Spanish I (third semester)
• Intermediate Spanish II (fourth semester)
• Second Year Spanish: Emphasis on Culture
• Accelerated Second Year Spanish
• Intensive Conversation
• Intensive Writing
• Advanced Spanish: Grammar review
• Advanced Reading for Comprehension
• Advanced Writing in Spanish
• Literary Analysis in Spanish
• Intro to Translation
• Spanish for the Professions: emphasis Medical Spanish
• Special Topics in Hispanic Culture: Hispanic Cinema
• Language Internship: Spanish Tutoring at the Language Lab
• Spanish Speaking Proficiency
• Capstone Seminar

Curricular innovation (courses and programs created)

• Advanced Translation English-Spanish
• English-Spanish Interpreting
• Spanish for Healthcare professionals
• Advanced Spanish for Healthcare professionals
• Spanish for Mental Health Professionals
• Spanish for Tourism and Hospitality Management
• Spanish for Legal professionals
• Spanish and Latin American Cultures through Cinema.
• Minor in Spanish for the Professions and Translation

Open Field

Events coordinated or organized

• Utah Conference on Undergraduate Research (2017)
• Utah Valley University Undergraduate Research Exhibit (2018)
• Latin American Studies Symposium at Utah Valley University (2015-2018)
• Miguel Brieva in Translation at Utah Valley University (April 2019); and at the Spanish Resource Center at Brigham Young University (May, 2019)