Just in December 2022, Professor Geeslin had begun her term as Vice-Provost of Faculty and Academic Affairs at the university. She was an immensely popular mentor and advisor, an exceptional scholar of linguistics, distinguished teacher, and a gifted administrator who was taken from us in the fullness of life. But above all, Professor Geeslin was a wonderful and warm human being, a devoted mother and wife and a friend to many, and she has left a lasting legacy. You can find her obituary here. Plans are underway to dedicate the Linguistics Lab to Professor Geeslin, which is in the process of being renamed the Kimberly Geeslin Research Room.

As always, our faculty and alumni have been active in research and teaching. To name a few: Olimpia Rosenthal published her book Race, Sex, and Segregation in Colonial Latin America (Routledge). It was launched and celebrated at a roundtable, attended by eminent scholars from IU and outside. Professor Darlene Sadlier’s book on the classic Cuban film Memories of Underdevelopment, was published by the British Film Institute. Also, a book by alumna Ligia Bezerra, Everyday Consumption in Twenty-First-Century Brazilian Fiction, has been published by Purdue UP.

A number of colleagues have earned high merits for their teaching and service: Teaching Professor Israel Herrera has been selected as a member of the Royal Academy of Spanish’s Indiana Chapter. Professor Herrera also received the 2023 AATSP National Outstanding Service Award, with the ceremony taking place in Salamanca, Spain. IU’s College of Arts and Sciences awarded the 2023 James P. Holland Morley Award for Exemplary Teaching and Service to Professor César Félix-Brasdefer. Professor Laura Gurzynski-Weiss has been selected to join IU FACET (The Faculty Academy on Excellence in Teaching). Prof. Gurzynski-Weiss is the 9^th faculty member from our department to be inducted in this prestigious university organization. Teaching Professor Allen Davis in turn received the 2023 IUB FACET Dr. James Mumford Excellence in Diversity, Equity, Inclusion Award (Spanish and Portuguese), having been inducted to FACET in 2021.

On another front, Professor Félix-Brasdefer has become the new Academic Director of the IU Mexico Gateway. This is very exciting news, as the IU Gateway in Mexico City helps to facilitate contacts between faculty, students and IU alumni in Mexico City and Latin America. The Office also collaborates with partners at the Mexican National Autonomous University (UNAM) and at Sorbonne University (Paris) to organize events (in person and virtual) with scholars from all three universities. Four events were organized in this fashion over the last year: an interview with Nobel-Peace Prize winner Rigoberta Menchú Tum; a webinar on language and global citizenship, and two in person events: on Latin American Music, and on Migration and Identity. These events are open and accessible to all, in person or virtually through YouTube. You can find an interview with Prof. Félix-Brasdefer here.

The excellence of our faculty, graduate students, and undergraduate students has earned them many prestigious awards this year. Please read this article featuring Rose Schnabel, a double major in Biology and Spanish and an individualized minor in science writing. Rose (B.S./B.A. ’24), is also a Wells Scholar, among the most competitive and respected grants offered by an American university. Our colleague, Professor Kate Myers has won an IU Presidential Arts and Humanities Grant for her research project A Country of Shepherds, and Professor Jonathan Risner has won an IU Presidential Arts and Humanities Research Travel Grant for his research project Home Movies in Francoist Spain, 1939-1975. Professor Félix-Brasdefer and Teaching Professor Virginia Hojas-Carbonell won the 2023 Trustees Teaching Awards. Three graduate students, Anthony Brandy, Estefany Sosa, and Núria Alishio-Caballero, have received FLAS fellowships to study Mixtec, Nahuatl, and Catalan respectively. Several others have earned travel and merit awards from the College Arts and Humanities Institute and our own Department. I am also proud to announce that this year again many our Spanish major graduating seniors have received university awards. A total of eight awards went out, to Kaitlin Scott (Elvis J. Stahr Distinguished Senior Award) and Nia Bailey, Siddharth Das, Andrea Garcia-Estrada, Sarah Greenwell, Mout-Maine Moustapha, Britney Nilli, Mahnoor Qureshi (Kate Hevner Mueller Outstanding Senior Award). Finally, our Department was prominently featured on the 2023 IUB Latino Faculty and Staff Council Award Ceremony, as Lara Vanin was recognized as distinguished Latina graduate student, Spanish major Andrea García Estrada as distinguished Latina undergraduate student, and the 20^th anniversary Diálogos graduate conference as a distinguished even relevant to Latinx life on campus.

In terms of cultural events, Teatro Vida is thriving again and presented in April an evening of theater performances themed “On Borders and Bilingualism” with plays in Spanish and Portuguese, and a new play written by MFA student David Dávila. We also saw the 10^th Annual Spanish and Portuguese Song Festival, with wonderful singers and musicians from a variety of departments and schools. These events would not have been possible without the dedication and creativity of organizers and moderators Lara Vanin, Israel Herrera, Paul Coats, and Maria Montenegro.

Our community here in the Department is always evolving. Two of our professors have been promoted: Professor Olimpia Rosenthal was promoted to Associate Professor, and Patricia Matos Amaral was promoted to Full Professor this year. Congratulations on such well-deserved news! We have been fortunate to hire Professor Leslie del Carpio as an Assistant Professor. Professor Del Carpio has had a terrific first year teaching Spanish for Heritage Learner and assisting us in building up a Spanish Heritage Learning Program that is already in high demand and growing. We have had one retirement in the department, of Professor Reyes Vila-Belda. Professor Vila-Belda is the author of three books: Antonio Machado, poeta de lo nimio. Alteración de la perspectiva; Gloria Fuertes: poesía contra el silencio. Literatura, censura y mercado editorial (1954-1962); and Ellas cuentan la guerra: Las poetas españolas y la guerra civil (1936-2013), next to many book chapters and journal articles. Professor Vila-Belda taught several courses, including The Hispanic World War I and II, Spanish Modernities, Hispanic Poetry and Modern Spanish Fiction. We miss her very much! We continue to be blessed with our wonderful staff members, even though there too, some changes have happened: Tracy Sheets, our Program Manager has left us for another position after many years of dedicated service, and Karla Allgood has moved into her position. Lisa McAuley is our wonderful new scheduling officer, working alongside Jennifer Howard and Anne-Sophie Stringer. We are grateful for their loyalty. Last but not least, Manuel Díaz-Campos has finished his term as chair and as of this July, yours truly has embarked on a new term. We thank Professor Díaz-Campos sincerely for his lasting service to the Department!

For this coming year, we look forward to the next MESDA lecture, to take place on September 15^th 2023, and to many events and activities, which you can follow here. Please come and visit us if you are in the area!

Warm wishes for 2023-24,

Anke Birkenmaier