Lauren Miranda
Current job title and employer and briefly describe what it is you do: Graduate Research Assistant and Graduate Teaching Assistant at The Ohio State University. My research focuses on inclusive pedagogies for language teaching with an emphasis on Afro-Latinx identities in Heritage Language classrooms.
Academic experience at Saint Michael's College help prepare you for your career: My coursework in the Spanish department at St. Mike's made me fall in love with pedagogy, especially World Language pedagogy. I will never forget Profe Mombell's Spanish and Latin American Film course I took as a junior. It gave me so much insight into how to effectively structure a course curriculum and foster student engagement with language learning.
Favorite memory or class from your time studying at St. Mike’s: Studying abroad for a semester in Ecuador was a huge highlight! I also fondly remember reading our senior seminar papers and feeling so proud of myself and my classmates for the works we had created.
Completed or are completing a graduate program, please provide the name of the degree and institution: MA Spanish - University of Oregon; MA Hispanic Linguistics - Ohio State University; PhD in progress - Ohio State University
Translated your volunteer experience at Saint Michael’s into giving back to your community after graduation: I did an AmeriCorps term of service after graduating and had a very positive experience. All of the domestic experiential education programs I've worked and study abroad programs I've taught have had extensive service components to engage students with the local community. In my daily life, I volunteer regularly at community rock climbing clinics and recently organized and a workshop on anti-racist world language pedagogies at Ohio State.
Other information you would like to share or advice for incoming or current students: Study Spanish at SMC! Study abroad!!
Contacted via e-mail as a resource for current students: Yes