About

The Consortium in Latin American and Caribbean Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Duke University was created in 1990, formally recognizing 50 years of informal cooperation between the two universities. The geographic proximity of the campuses—just nine miles apart—greatly encourages and facilitates regular collaboration among faculty and students. The UNC and Duke Consortium has received major funding from the Andrew W. Mellon, Ford, and Tinker Foundations. Since 1991 it has been designated a Title VI National Resource Center (NRC) by the U.S. Department of Education.

Mission Statement

The Consortium in Latin American and Caribbean Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Duke University seeks to encourage and facilitate collaboration and cooperation in all aspects of Latin American and Caribbean studies across the two campuses and across disciplines. A focus on interdisciplinary work is one of the Consortium’s hallmarks.

Specifically, the Consortium’s goals are:

To enhance

. . . the Latin American and Caribbean curriculum on the two campuses.

To provide

. . . opportunities for research and training for students and faculty from all disciplines and professional schools.

To stimulate

. . . institutional and public awareness of the importance and richness of Latin American and Caribbean peoples and cultures.

We work to fulfill this mission and to meet our goals through:

Educational activities (new courses on Latin America and the Caribbean; our internationally recognized Yucatec Maya language program; a Language Across the Curriculum initiative; the Latin American Film Festival; guest speakers; outreach to local schools, businesses, media, policy makers, and the general public, etc.)

Research and training support (interdisciplinary working groups; annual conferences; research and conference travel grants; a model cooperative library collection development agreement; academic linkages with institutions and scholars throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, a cooperative publishing program of Latin American and Caribbean works in translation, etc.)

Collaborative outreach activities with local, regional and national scope (training programs and curriculum development projects with local public school teachers and faculty from other colleges in the Southeast and Middle Atlantic regions of the US; the Latin American Film Collection; the Resource Lending Library; art exhibits; a speakers series, etc.). We aim to reach geographically and economically diverse audiences that include under-served communities throughout the state.

Disseminating information about Consortium events, competitions, and resources, as well as news of interest to the Latin Americanist and Caribbeanist community, via the Consortium’s e-mail listserve and Calendar of events.