Department of Ethnic Studies

Luis Moreno

 Profile:  

I’m one of the first in the nation (and world) to earn a Ph.D. in Chicano/Latino Studies!
I believe that understanding history plays an important role in the development of ones research and teaching pedagogy. My pedagogy utilizes history to teach students critical thinking, rhetoric, and writing skills. My education and teaching background is composed of the interdisciplinary field of Chicano/Latino Studies with an emphasis on Chicana/o history. This background allows me to utilize the fields of history, education, culture, labor and migration into my research and teaching pedagogy. This pedagogy focuses on praxis (theory and action) inside and outside of the classroom.
My research within the field of Chicano/Latino Studies and History has focused on labor, migration, and activism histories. This focus has led me to conduct research on the history of working-class Mexicans in California, especially the oral histories of farm workers, families, union organizers, and community activists who struggled for a better quality of life.
I’m currently working on numerous articles/book chapters and a book manuscript. The articles/book chapters are the following: The Growers Strike Back: The Bracero Program In Ventura County, 1942-1964 and ¡Ya Basta! The Struggle For Justice And Equality: The Chicano Power Movement On The Oxnard Plain. My book manuscript is the following: Labor, Migration, And Activism: A History Of Mexican Workers On The Oxnard Plain, 1930-1980 which focuses on the relationship between labor and migration in the development of the City of Oxnard and the Mexican neighborhood of La Colonia.
In addition, my research and teaching has benefited by my participation in a numerous of grass-root and non-profit organizations in California and Michigan. This experience has influenced the foundation of my understanding of the world around us, especially the Chicano/Latino experience. As a member of a diversity and minority community, I have the opportunity to utilize my organizing experience within my academic writings, research, and teaching.

Education:

Ph.D. Chicano/Latino Studies, Michigan State University (2012)
M.A. Chicana and Chicano Studies, California State University, Northridge (2007)
B.A. Chicana/o Studies, San Diego State University (1999)

Courses Taught:

ETHN 1100 – Introduction to Latino/a Studies
ETHN 3100 – Mexican Culture
ETHN 4200 – Latino/a Cultural Studies