Curriculum Vitae
Alejandro A. Ramírez Ph.D.
E-mail: aar14@psu.edu
https://sites.psu.edu/alexramirez/
_____________________________________________________________________________
Office Home
Department of Spanish, Italian and Portuguese 610 Old Farm Ln
349 Burrowes Bldg State College, PA 16803
The Pennsylvania State University Ph. (814)321-7024
Ph. (814) 865-4252
University Park, PA 16802
Education
Ph.D in Spanish, The University of Arizona, 2008.
Major: Eighteenth-, Nineteenth- and Twentieth-Century Latin American Literature
Minors: Eighteenth-, Nineteenth- and Twentieth-Century Spanish literature,
Literary Theory.
M.A., The University of Arizona, 2004.
Major: Hispanic literature
B.A., Universidad de Sonora, México, 2000.
Major: Hispanic literature
Dissertation
“La poética de Olga Orozco como proyección estética del pensamiento moderno: un modelo de doble lectura”
Director: Prof. Eliana Rivero
Date of Completion: April 2008
My dissertation reassesses the work of Olga Orozco (1920-1998) by exploring its ideological background. I show how the modern conception of the world impacts and determines the way Orozco creates her images and lyrical strategies. I also establish a “reading model” that is based on the aesthetic elements of what it has been called Post-modernity. The possibilities that arise, based on the comparison and contrast between both of these approaches, yield the hermeneutical process of exegesis, that is to say, the comparative reading as a critical approach.
Academic Honors
Teaching Excellence Award. The Pennsylvania State University, 2012
Liberal Arts College Academic Marshall. The Pennsylvania State University, 2011
Ph.D. Comprehensive Examinations. High Pass, The University of Arizona, 2006
M.A. Completed exam, High Pass, The University of Arizona, 2004
Awards and Grants
First place in the National Poetry Contest “Darío Galaviz Quezada” in 1998 and 2000.
First place in the binational (Mexico-USA) award of poetry “Enrique Quijada”
State Fund for Culture and Arts Grant (Fondo estatal para la cultura y las artes) 3,600 Dlls. (Project: Cometer el fuego) 1999-2000.
Winner of the Mexican National Poetry Award “Clemencia Isaura” in 1999.
Winner of the Mexican National Poetry Award “Premio nacional de poesía Barolomé Delgado de León” in 2001.
Winner of the Sonora State Poetry Award “Libro Sonorense” in 2000, 2007, 2015 and 2017.
Winner of the binational (Mexico-USA) award of poetry “Anita Pompa de Trujillo” in 2007.
Teaching and Research Interests
– 19th-20th Century Mexican poetry, prose fictions, cinema, and history
-18th-through 21st Century Latin American Literature and culture
– 19th through 20th Century Spanish peninsular literature, film, and culture
– Transatlantic studies
– Chicano and U.S Latino literature and cultural production
– Hermeneutics
– All levels of Spanish courses
Articles
Ramírez-Arballo, Alejandro. “El lector analógico” Hermes analógica. V1. 2010 < http://sites.google.com/site/hermesanalogica/N-1>
Ramírez-Arballo, Alejandro “Los fantasmas de la canícula: historia, memoria e imaginación en la obra de Miguel Méndez.” Ciberletras. v21. 2009. <http://www.lehman.cuny.edu/ciberletras/v21/ramirezarballo.htm>
Ramírez-Arballo, Alejandro. “Estilo profético y salmódico en la obra de Olga Orozco” Divergencias. v6. 2008. <http://www.coh.arizona.edu/divergencias/archives/invierno2008/estilo%20profetico%20y%20salmodico.pdf>
Ramírez-Arballo, Alejandro. “El desplante neorromántico de Alex de la Iglesia en el contexto finisecular” Dissidences. v.6-7. 2009-10 http://www.dissidences.org/files/Ramirez_De_la_Iglesia_6-7.pdf
Book Chapters
Ramírez-Arballo, Alejandro. “Olga Orozco: dos actuales relecturas de Museo salvaje (1974) y Mutaciones de la realidad (1979). Los divertimentos de las musas. Ensayos sobre escritoras mexicanas e hispanoamericanas. Ed. Alma Leticia Martínez Figueroa. Hermosillo: Unison. 2009. 97-129
Books
Ramírez-Arballo, Álex. Buenos salvajes. Seis poetas de Sonora en su poesía. 1ª. Ed. Hermosillo: Instituto Sonorense de Cultura, 2017
Ramírez-Arballo, Álex. Como si fuera verdad 1ª. Ed. Hermosillo: Instituto Sonorense de Cultura, 2016
Ramirez, Alejandro. Oros siempre lejanos 1ª. Ed. Hermosillo: Instituto Sonorense de Cultura, 2010
Ramírez, Alejandro Sanciones del aura 1ª. Ed. Hermosillo: Instituto Sonorense de Cultura, 2008
Ramírez, Alejandro. La piel del desierto. 1ª. Ed. UNAM, 2001.
Ramírez, Alejandro. Pantomimas. 1ª. Ed. Hermosillo: Instituto Sonorense de Cultura, 2000.
Ramírez, Alejandro. Las comuniones insólitas. 1ª. Ed. Hermosillo: Editorial UNISON, 1999.
Reviews
“Ricardo Senabre, Metáfora y novela.” Arizona Journal of Hispanic Cultural Studies 12
(2008): 3-4
“Tomás Ramos, Los perros.” Divergencias 6 (2008): 88-90
Periodicals
The Huffington Post
La Opinión
Latino California
Conferences
“Espacio, territorio y región en la novelística de David Toscana”, 14 th Congreso de Literatura Mexicana Contemporánea, University of Texas, March 6 th, 2009.
“El desplante neorromántico de Alex de la Iglesia en el contexto finisecular”, 11th. Annual OSU Symposium on Hispanic and Luso-Brazilian Literatures, Cultures and Linguistics, Ohio State University, April 18 th, 2008.
“Norte de México: nuevas aproximaciones a su literatura”, 28 annuall Levy-Watseney Graduate Symposium, University of Toronto, March 14 th, 2008.
“El estilo salmódico y profético en la obra de Olga Orozco”, XXI Coloquio de Literaturas Mexicanas, Universidad de Sonora (México), November 9th, 2007.
“El sueño de Sor Juana como defensa del orden simbólico y descubrimiento del Otro. Seventeenth Annual Symposium on Hispanic And Luso-Brazilian Literature, Language and Culture, The University of Arizona, February 9, 2007.
“La destrucción del mito revolucionario en Hasta no verte Jesús mío de Elena Poniatowska”, Céfiro Seventh Annual Conference, Latin American and Iberian Languages, Literatures and Cultures, Texas Tech University, April 1, 2006.
“El plano mítico de la escritura en Todos los gatos son pardos (1970) y El tuerto es Rey (1970) de Carlos Fuentes,” Thirteenth Annual Symposium on Hispanic and Luso-Brazilian Literature, Language and Culture, The University of Arizona, February 19, 2002.
Teaching Experience
Faculty Lecturer. The Pennsylvania State University. Fall 2008 –Present.
Courses taught:
Span 412 Span 412 Translation techniques of oral and written translation from Spanish to English and vice versa, particularly for business, literature, and social work.
Span 410 Advanced Oral Expression and Communication. Emphasis on achieving practical command of spoken Spanish and the comprehension of native speech. The use of journalistic materials is an essential part of this course.
Span 301 Advanced Writing and Stylistics in Spanish for Spanish Speakers. This course will enhance writing proficiency in Spanish of Spanish speaking students by targeting common problems characteristic of Spanish speakers.
Span 300 Advanced Grammar and Composition Through Reading. Development of advanced grammar and composition skills through reading texts by Spanish and Latin American Authors and adapting their techniques for original compositions.
Span 100A Spanish for heritage learners. This course is aimed at students who learned Spanish in an informal non-academic setting. Span100A is a course designed for bilingual students who have personal interest improving their reading, writing, and oral communication in Spanish.
Ltnst 100 Introduction to Latino Studies. This course provides an interdisciplinary introduction to the study of Latin@s in the U.S. We consider questions of identity: what are the different components of Latin@ identity? What are the advantages and disadvantages of naming a cohesive group when it is composed of many different nationalities?
Engl 226- Border Theory. This course focuses on contemporary Latina@ culture, placing it in its historical and cultural contexts and analyzing it through the frameworks of borders.
Span 497 B- Latin American Identity Problem. Transhistorical analysis of the evolution of the problem of identity expressed by Latin American philosophers.
Span 496 B- Mexican film. Historical and critical review of Mexican Film. Analysis of the aesthetic characteristics of Mexican Film tradition, as well as a complete analysis of its genres and themes.
Span 356- Survey of Spanish American Literature through “Modernismo.” Selected major works of prose, poetry, and drama from “modernismo” through “Post-boom.”
Span 297 Spanish in the Digital Age: Culture, Language, and New Technologies
This course provides an opportunity to enhance acquisition of the fundamental elements of the Spanish language. Reading, writing and speaking skills are polished as students build on knowledge of the target culture through research, discussion and projects using the latest technology.
Span 253 W- Introduction to Hispanic Literature. Introduction to generic distinctions, critical methods, and approaches to Hispanic literature.
Span 200 Intensive grammar review; composition. Designed primarily for majors and prospective majors.
Span 110- Fourth Semester Language (Conversation on cultural topics)
Span 100- Fourth Semester Spanish Language (Intensive grammar, composition and cultural topics)
Cmlit 005 Introduction to Literatures of the Americas, allows you to explore the great variety of literatures of the Americas, including translations of texts written in Spanish, French, Portuguese, and Amerindian languages, as well as texts originally written in English. Readings include many genres and artistic forms dealing with histories and accounts of "American" issues, such as conquest, nationalism, slavery, diaspora, and immigration.
Span 003 The purpose of this course is to develop and improve communication skills when listening, reading, speaking, and writing in Spanish. The course follow a communicative information-based task approach, which springs from the idea that languages are best learned when real world information becomes the focus of students’ activities. Therefore, during the semester, you will exchange real-life information about yourself and your classmates.
Span 001 and 002 World Campus Penn State University. Spanish online at Penn Stat is for students who are native speakers of a language other than Spanish. The purpose of this course is to develop and improve communication skills in Spanish while listening, reading, speaking, and writing in the target language. The course follows a communicative information-based task approach, which comes from the idea that languages are best learned when real world information becomes the focus of students’ activities. Therefore, during the semester, you will exchange real-life information about yourself with your classmates.
Graduate Associate in Teaching. The University of Arizona. Spring 2005-Spring 2008
Courses taught:
Span 102- Second Semester Spanish Language (Basic grammar and culture)
Span 201- Third Semester Spanish Language (Grammar review and culture)
Span 202- Fourth Semester Spanish Language (Grammar review and culture)
Span 251- Intermediate Spanish (Intensive grammar and composition)
Span 330- Intermediate Conversation (Grammar general review and conversation on topics related to Hispanic communities around the globe, particularly in Spain, Latin America and the United States)
Span 440- Mexican and Mexican-American literature. (This course focuses mainly in the evolution of Chicano literature. I utilized a historical and critical approach that allowed students to understand not only the aesthetic Characteristics of the Mexican-Americans writers, but also the cultural and political implications of living in Mexamerica.
Graduate Assistant in Teaching. The University of Arizona. Fall 2002- Fall 2004
Courses taught:
Span 102– Second Semester Spanish Language (Basic grammar and culture)
Span 201– Third Semester Spanish Language (Grammar review and culture)
Span 202– Fourth Semester Spanish Language (Grammar review and culture)
Private Spanish Tutor. The University of Arizona. Fall 2004-Spring 2008
Teaching Interests
My teaching interests include: 19th-20th Century–Spanish American literature and culture, particularly the analysis of space representation and the different poetics of territory; 19th and 20th-century Spanish literature. I have dedicated some papers to the analysis and understanding of the representation process, and I also consider of high cultural value the effective teaching of literary movements and tendencies on both sides of the Atlantic. It is my belief that the Hispanic tradition cannot be understand without having a general and well grounded idea of the Peninsular and Latin American realities.
Currently, I am studying the relationship between space and representation in media, specifically the documentary. I think documentary is a film genre that allows the testimony well as the recreation.
I also have a profound interest for the Latin@ experience in the U.S. I have been working for one year for the English Department at Penn State University teaching a Border Theory class and also an Introduction to U.S. Latin@s.
Editorial Positions
2015-Present. Editorial Assistant of Journal ConNotas of University of Sonora. México.
2014-Present. Editorial Assistant of Fonseca: Journal of Communication of University of Salamanca. Spain.
2009-Present: Assistant Director of Hermes Analógica. Analogical Hermeneutics Interdisciplinary Journal of the Instituto Superior de Filosofía de Valladolid and the Centro de Estudios y Análisis Social de Galicia (CEASGA) Spain.
2003- Present: Editorial Assistant of the Arizona Journal of Hispanic Cultural Studies.
2005-Present: Editorial assistant and reviewer of the Journal of Hispanic Studies of the Graduate Students of the Spanish and Portuguese of the University of Arizona: Divergencias.
Administrative Positions and Academic Service
Summer 2015. Penn State Spanish Abroad Program. Director. Puebla, México.
2002-2008: Professor and writer Miguel Méndez’s Assistant. During these years I helped Professor Méndez on translations, editions, and the organization of his works and archives.
14th Annual Graduate Student Symposium on Hispanic and Luso-Brazilian Literature, Language and Culture. My position included the coordination of presentations and session moderator. Spring 2004.
Languages
Spanish: native speaker
English: near-native proficiency.
Portuguese: good reading knowledge; fair speaking ability.
Memberships
The Modern Language Association
Sigma Delta Pi International Hispanic Honor Society
Service
From 2002 to 2008 I served as a judge for the activities of the annual language fair at The University of Arizona, called by Partnership Across Languages (PAL)
Technical and Computer skills
I am proficient in the use of the following software:
* Microsoft Office (Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Access)
* Microsoft Windows
* Adobe Dreamweaver
* Adobe Acrobat Professional
* Adobe Photoshop
* Adobe Soundbooth
* Adobe Fireworks
* Adobe Flash
* Sony Vegas
* WordPress
References
Prof. Giuli Dussias. Department Head. Department of Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese. The Pennsylvania State University.
E-Mail address: pdussias@psu.edu
Mailing address: The Pennsylvania State University
442 Burrowes Building
University Park, PA 16802
Prof. Melissa Wright. Latin@ Studies Director. The Pennsylvania State University. Phone; (814) 865-9133
E-mail address mww11@psu.edu
Mailing address: Department of Geography
308 Walker Building
University Park, PA 16802
Prof. Malcom Compitello. Department Head, Department of Spanish and Portuguese. The University of Arizona.
Phone: (520) 621-7347
E-mail address: compitel@email.arizona.edu
Mailing addres: Department of Spanish and Portuguese
545 Modern Languages
The University of Arizona
Tucson, AZ 857212-006
Prof. Emerita Eliana Rivero. The University of Arizona. Phone (520) 546-0480
E-mail address: elianari@msn.com
Mailing address: Department of Spanish and Portuguese
545 Modern Languages
The University of Arizona
Tucson, AZ 857212-006
Prof. Joan Gilabert. The University of Arizona. Phone (520) 621-3780
E-mail address: gilabert@email.arizona.edu
Mailing address: Department of Spanish and Portuguese (same as above)
Prof. Melissa Fitch. The University of Arizona. Phone (520) 626-7647
E-mail address: mfitch@email.arizona.edu
Mailing address: Department of Spanish and Portuguse (same as above)
Prof. Robert Fiore. The University of Arizona. Phonre (520) 621-3649
E-mail address: fiore@email.arizona.edu
Mailing address Deparment of Spanish and Portuguese (same as above)
Prof. Eliud Chuffe. Department of Spanish and Portuguese. Basic Language Program Director.
The University of Arizona. Phone: (520) 621-7346
E-mail address: chuffee@email.arizona.edu
Mailing address: Department of Spanish and Portuguese (same as above)
Complete Dossier forthcoming from:
Jack Gaynor
Interfolio, Inc.
Paper Processing Center
1900 L Street NW
Suite #603Washington, DC 20036
(877) 773-6546 x. 205
Courses taken towards MA
| Course | Description | Semester | Instructor |
| 501 | Introduction to Hispanic Studies. | Fall 02 | Compitello |
| 581 | Dev of Mexican Literature. | Fall 02 | Gyurko |
| 550 | Frgn Lang Tchg: Thry & Appl. | Fall 02 | Chuffe |
| 540 | Dev of the Span-Amer Novel since XIX Cent to present. | Spring 03 | Promis |
| 541 | La frontera en la literatura mexicana y chicana. | Spring 03 | Durán |
| 571 | Appl of Critical Thry in Latin American Cultural Production. | Spring 03 | Fitch |
| 510 | Dev of Span Prose & Poetry from 1200-1700 | Fall 03 | Kinkade |
| 521 | Ciencia e imaginación en la novela española realista-naturalista. | Fall 03 | Gilabert |
| 696c | Contemporary Mex &Mex Amer Theatre. | Fall 03 | Gyurko |
| 511 | Humor and Neoscepticism in the Picaresque in Spain and Latin America. | Spring 04 | Fiore |
| 696a | La iniciación de la libertad de pensamiento en España: La Generación del 98. | Spring 04 | Gilabert |
| 540 | “Desarrollo de la poesía hispánica: práctica poética del siglo XIX al siglo XX” | Fall 04 | Rivero |
| 551 | “The New Historial Novel in México” | Fall 04 | Gyurko |
Courses taken towards Ph.D.
| Course | Description | Semester | Instructor |
| 530 | Aztec and Mayan Literature, History, and Mythology. | Spring 05 | Gyurko |
| 541 | Del Modernismo a las vanguardias hispanoamericanas. | Spring 05 | Rivero |
| 521 | El romanticismo español. | Fall 05 | Gilabert |
| 541 | Reading Posvanguardia Poetry in Latin America | Fall 05 | Rivero |
| 561 | Cine español y transformación social. | Fall 05 | Compitello |
| 696B | Borges and Cortázar | Fall 05 | Gyurko |
| 511 | Desarrollo de la poesía española a través de sus textos. | Spring 06 | Kinkade |
| 696B | Sor Juana y el Barroco | Spring 06 | Rivero |
| 696D | Signo, simetría y seducción | Spring 06 | Montalbetti |
| Port 305A | Port for Spanish Speakers | Spring 06 | Fernández |
| 930 | Supplemental Registration | Fall 06 | Olarrea |
| Port 325a | Inermediate Grammar & writing | Fall 06 | Da Silva |