Faculty & Staff

See all WLC Faculty below.

Leadership & Administration

Brenda Werth Associate Professor and Department Chair, World Languages & Cultures

Brenda Werth’s research interests include Latin èßäÉçÇøapp theater, performance, documentary film, memory studies, human rights, gender, social movements, and translation. She teaches courses on Latin A…

Ìý werth@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-1449

Associate Chair

Esther Holtermann Hurst Senior Professorial Lecturer

Professor Holtermann is interested in immigration, day labor and the Latino community. She teaches language and topic courses in Spanish at èßäÉçÇøapp University, and is currently the associate director…

Ìý eholter@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-2390

Language Program Directors

  • Arabic: Erez Naaman, Director
    George Berg, Associate Director
  • Chinese: Xiaoquan Raphael Zhang, Director
  • French: Naima Hachad, Director
    Claudia Gotea, Associate Director
    Elizabeth Lang, Director of French Translation Certificate
  • German: William Quirk, Director
  • Italian: Ranieri Moore Cavaceppi, Director
  • Japanese: Ken Knight, Director
  • Korean: Hye Young Shin, Director
  • Russian: Alina Israeli, Director
  • Spanish: Luis Cerezo-Ceballos, Director
    EstherÌýIbáñez-Holtermann, Associate Director
    PatriciaÌýMontilla-Keeling, Associate Director
    Lilian Baeza, Director of Heritage Spanish Study
    Brenda Werth, Director of Latin èßäÉçÇøapp & Spanish Studies, Interim Director of Translation Certificates
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All World Languages & Cultures Faculty

Last name starts with A

Last name starts with B

Lilian Baeza-Mendoza Hurst Senior Professorial Lecturer CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Professor Lilian Baeza-Mendoza teaches Spanish language, Latin èßäÉçÇøapp Studies, and translation at the Department of World Languages and Cultures. For many years, she served as the Associate Director…

Ìý baezamen@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-2383

Naomi Baron Prof Emerita

Naomi Baron’s research interests include language and technology, reading, first language acquisition, the relationship between speech and writing, the history and structure of English, and higher edu…

Ìý (202) 885-2455

Robin Barr Linguist-in-Residence CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Prof. Barr holds a PhD in Linguistics from Harvard with concentrations in both Indo-European and psycholinguistics. Her research on morphology involves the relationship between language learning and l…

Ìý rbarr@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-2582

George Berg Hurst Senior Professorial Lecturer CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Professor Berg has served as a faculty advisor for the Arabic Club and faculty supervisor for visiting Fulbright student teaching assistants for the past two years. His teaching and research interests…

Ìý berg@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-2382

Last name starts with C

Jie Cai Professorial Lecturer CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Professor Cai received his BA in Chinese from Shanghai Normal University in China and his MA and MLS from the University of Iowa. Prior to joining AU, he had taught all levels of Chinese for over 16 y…

Ìý jcai@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-6922

Ranieri Moore Cavaceppi Hurst Senior Professorial Lecturer CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Professor Cavaceppi teaches various levels of Italian at èßäÉçÇøapp University, including beginner, intermediate, conversation & composition, and topics courses. As Director of the Italian Program, he s…

Ìý ranieri@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-1468

Luis Cerezo Ceballos Associate Professor CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Dr. Cerezo is Associate professor of applied linguistics and Director of the Spanish language program at èßäÉçÇøapp University. He has been a consultant for institutions like the Fulbright Commission an…

Ìý cerezoce@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-6277

Last name starts with E

Last name starts with G

Courtney Glover Associate Director AU Centers Abroad OGIS | AU Abroad

A life-long Francophile, Courtney began her international adventure on a summer study abroad program while she was in high school in Annecy, France. After that experience, she decided to pursue her lo…

Ìý pollack@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-1328

Claudia Gotea Senior Professorial Lecturer CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Dr. Gotea was born and raised in Brasov, Romania where she earned her BA degree specializing in Eugene Ionesco's theater of the absurd. Right after earning her degree, she went to Penn State to pursue…

Ìý gotea@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-6348

Ludy Grandas Hurst Senior Professorial Lecturer CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Ludy Grandas’ research interests include issues of national identity in Latin America and in the Hispanic communities in the U.S. Her teaching interests include the Studies of Culture in Latin America…

Ìý grandas@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-2434

Last name starts with H

Naima Hachad Associate Professor CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Dr. Hachad’s research focuses on issues of gender and sexuality, autobiography and testimony, and the representation and memorialization of violence in cultural productions of the Maghreb and the Cari…

Ìý hachad@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-1458

Cristina Hernandez Gil de Lamadrid Professorial Lecturer CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Professor Hernández Gil de Lamadrid teaches Spanish language at the Department of World Languages & Cultures. She served as the Associate Director of the Spanish Language Program coordinating Spanish …

Ìý chernand@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-6921

Esther Holtermann Hurst Senior Professorial Lecturer CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Professor Holtermann is interested in immigration, day labor and the Latino community. She teaches language and topic courses in Spanish at èßäÉçÇøapp University, and is currently the associate director…

Ìý eholter@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-2390

Last name starts with I

Alina Israeli Professor CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Professor Israeli received her PhD in Slavic Linguistics from Yale University. Prior to coming to the United States she received a BA equivalent in Russian Language and Literature from Leningrad State…

Ìý aisrael@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-2387

Last name starts with J

Karina Jeronimides Senior Professorial Lecturer CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Professor Karina Jeronimides Krilla was born in South America but was raised in Italy and France. She speaks five languages fluently and has lived and studied in Europe, South America and the United S…

Ìý karina@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-6374

Last name starts with K

Rana Kateeb Senior Professorial Lecturer CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Professor Kateeb, Arabic Language Instructor, has a BA in English for Specific Purposes and an MA in Applied Linguistic from Jordan University of Science and Technology. She has previously taught vari…

Ìý kateeb@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-6339

Tabitha Kidwell Senior Professorial Lecturer CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Tabitha Kidwell is a language teacher and teacher educator interested in innovative approaches to language teaching, language teacher education, and the development of intercultural competence. She ha…

Ìý tkidwell@american.edu

Ken Knight Hurst Senior Professorial Lecturer CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Interests: L2 Japanese phonology; minority languages of Japan; diaspora and language attrition; minority languages and national language policy

Ìý knight@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-6337

Sarah Knowles Senior Professorial Lecturer CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Sarah Young Knowles specializes in second language acquisition, language teaching methods and teacher education, and instructional design. She earned her doctorate in applied linguistics at Georgetown…

Ìý syoung@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-2130

Last name starts with L

Elizabeth Lang Hurst Senior Professorial Lecturer Emerita

Elizabeth Lang has taught French language courses at AU since 1991 and will retire at the end of AY 2023-2024. Her primary interests are political, economic, social and cultural issues in Francophone …

Ìý elang@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-2342

Last name starts with M

Kyung-Hwa Martin Adjunct Instructor CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Professor Martin received her M.Ed. Curriculum & Instruction degree from George Mason University, concentration in Korean as a foreign language and ESOL education. In the past, she worked as a Korean …

Ìý kmartin@american.edu

Juliana Martinez Associate Professor CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Professor Martínez focuses on the intersection of violence and body politics in Latin America. Her two main areas of research are: representation of historical violence recent cultural production; and…

Ìý jmartinez@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-2586

Patricia Montilla Keeling Instructor CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Professor Patricia Montilla Keeling has an undergraduate degree in Business Administration-Marketing from University of Maryland. She also obtained a Master of Arts, Spanish: Latin èßäÉçÇøapp Studies an…

Ìý pmk@american.edu

Rita Morandi Professorial Lecturer CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Professor Morandi research interests include language change of minority languages and more specifically language shift in Germanic speech islands and its socio-historical correlates. She finds the in…

Ìý morandi@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-2389

Last name starts with N

Erez Naaman Associate Professor CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Erez Naaman specializes in classical Arabic literature and culture. In addition, his research interests include the intellectual history of the premodern Islamic world. His scholarly work has focused …

Ìý naaman@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-2468

Jacques Nalabandian Professorial Lecturer CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Research Interests: Factors influencing the 19th Century Arab Literary Revivalism in the Levant; Ottoman influence on Arab culture and language (15th-19th centuries); Arabic morphology, syntax and pho…

Ìý jnalaban@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-3771

Last name starts with O

Amy Oliver Associate Professor Emerita

Professor Oliver's teaching and research on Latin America explore philosophical topics such as marginality, feminism, nepantlismo, and transfronterismo. She works on the Hispanic ess…

Ìý aoliver@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-2140

Last name starts with P

Last name starts with Q

William Quirk Senior Professorial Lecturer CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Dr. Quirk is Director of the German Program at AU. He has scholarly interests in German, English and French from the late eighteenth century to the present. Within German he focuses on the Age of Goet…

Ìý quirk@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-6769

Last name starts with R

Isabel Rivero-Vila Senior Professorial Lecturer CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Isabel Rivero-Vilá is a Senior Professorial Lecturer of French and Spanish at èßäÉçÇøapp University (Washington, D.C) and an independent filmmaker. She has been recently named Chevalier de l’ordre des P…

Ìý isabelrv@american.edu

Eunhae Ro Ro Adjunct Instructor CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Professor Ro received a master’s degree in Foreign/World Language Education from George Mason. As a native Korean, she has taught both heritage and non-heritage students in various settings. She is cu…

Ìý ero@american.edu

Olga Rojer Associate Prof Emerita

Olga Elaine Rojer is Associate Professor of World Languages and Cultures. Her teaching and research interests include modern German history, literature, and film, Dutch Caribbean studies, and literary…

Ìý (202) 885-2139

Carmen helena Ruzza Senior Professorial Lecturer CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Professor Carmen Helena Ruzza received her undergraduate degree at the Universidad Central de Venezuela, and a Bachelor of Arts in Music from Conservatorio Lino Gallardo. She obtained a M.A in Latin A…

Ìý ruzza@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-2008

Last name starts with S

Abdelrahim Salih Adjunct Professorial Lecturer CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Professorial Lecturer Anthropologist and Linguist

Ìý (202) 885-6300

Kayoko Shibata Adjunct Instructor CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Hye Young Shin Senior Professorial Lecturer CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Dr. Shin received her PhD in Multilingual and Multicultural Education from George Mason University and Master’s degree in TESOL from èßäÉçÇøapp University. As a native Korean, she has taught both herita…

Ìý hshin@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-1513

Akane Shirata Adjunct Instructor CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Research Interests:Japanese heritage language educationCurriculum DevelopmentProject-based approachMulticultural/socio-cultural identity

Ìý ashirata@american.edu

Gemma Sune Minguella Senior Professorial Lecturer CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Prof. Suñé Minguella teaches Spanish language, literature and cinema. Her areas of interest focus on the relationship between poetry and philosophy, as well as literary and film criticism.

Ìý suneming@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-6923

Last name starts with T

Amelia Tseng Assistant Professor CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Dr. Amelia Tseng is Assistant Professor in Spanish and Linguistics. Her research addresses how language shapes and is shaped by identity across immigrant generations in Latinx diasporic contexts, focu…

Ìý tseng@american.edu

Last name starts with V

Christine Van Berten Senior Professorial Lecturer CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Christine van Berten teaches French and Francophone cultures, Literature and French language at university level in Europe and the United States for over 15 years. After a ten-year career as a Profess…

Ìý cvberten@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-6008

Charly Verstraet Assistant Professor CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Charly Verstraet's research and teaching interests include Caribbean and Indian Ocean Studies, Environmental Studies, Graphic Novels, Soccer and Politics, and Translation. His co-translation of award-…

Ìý verstrae@american.edu

Nuria Vilanova Associate Dean of Undergraduate Studies and Associate Professor CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Núria Vilanova teaches Latin èßäÉçÇøapp Culture, Literature and Cinema. Her research is devoted to the impact of social change and migration on cultural production. She works on textual and cinematic na…

Ìý vilanova@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-2393

Polina Vinogradova Hurst Senior Professorial Lecturer & TESOL Program Director CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Dr. Vinogradova is interested in the use of digital technology, specifically digital stories, in language education and in postmethod pedagogy and advocacy in language teacher development. Her recent …

Ìý vinograd@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-1446

Last name starts with W

Brenda Werth Associate Professor and Department Chair, World Languages & Cultures CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Brenda Werth’s research interests include Latin èßäÉçÇøapp theater, performance, documentary film, memory studies, human rights, gender, social movements, and translation. She teaches courses on Latin A…

Ìý werth@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-1449

Rebecca Wilner CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Rebecca joins the AU Faculty and Staff after serving as a Senior English Language Fellow in Panama City, Panama, where she was the Academic Director of the Center for English Language Immersion (CELI)…

Ìý wilner@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-3705

Last name starts with X

Svetlana Xu Hurst Senior Professorial Lecturer CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Dr. Xu has an extensive background as a linguist in both Chinese and Russian, with an emphasis in the areas of philosophy, literature, culture and communication.Possessing an impressive academic backg…

Ìý sxu@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-2262

Last name starts with Z

Xiaoquan Zhang Senior Professorial Lecturer CAS | World Languages and Cultures

Xiaoquan Raphael Zhang received his PhD in Chinese and ComparativeLiterature from Washington University in St. Louis. His primary researchfield is literature, culture, and history of late imperial Chi…

Ìý xrzhang@american.edu

Ìý (202) 885-2376