Below are our core Latinx Reseach Center staff:
Laura Pérez
Professor Laura Pérez is Chair of the new interdisciplinary and transAmericas research hub, the Latinx Research Center, formerly the Center for Latino Policy Research. She is author of Chicana Art: The Politics of Spiritual and Aesthetic Altarities (Duke University Press, 2007) in which she theorized decolonial aesthetics and decolonial spiritualities while archiving the work of more than forty Chicana visual, literary, and performance artists from the early 1970s through the early 2000s. She curated UC Berkeley’s first and only US Latina/o Performance Art series in 2001-02; co-curated, with Delilah Montoya, the multimedia exhibition Chicana Badgirls: Las Hociconas at 516 ARTS gallery in Albuquerque, New Mexico, from January-March of 2009, and curated Labor + a(r)t + orio: Bay Area Latin@ Arts Now at the Richmond Art Center, CA (April-June 2011). She has published in numerous publications on feminism, Chicana/o and hemispheric decolonial cultures. Her book, Eros Ideologies: Writings on Art, Spirituality, and the Decolonial, was published by Duke University Press in 2019. With Dr. Ann Marie Leimer, she is co-editor of “Consuelo Jimenez Underwood: Art, Weaving, Vision” (Duke UP, forthcoming in 2022) which was awarded the College Art Association’s Wyeth Foundation for American Art Book Publishing Award. Pérez received her BA/MA from the University of Chicago and her PhD from Harvard.
Luis Javier Hernandez
Administrative Manager, Latinx Research Center
Luis Javier Hernandez, BBA, is the Administrative Manager for the Latinx Research Center (LRC); formerly, the Program Manager for UCB's Latino Social Science Pipeline Initiative (LSSPI). He is a results-driven entrepreneurial professional with over 17 years of successful experience working in the private and public sectors in the United States and Mexico. He has ample expertise in developing international collaborations and negotiating with Governments from Latin American countries to develop programs and mobilize resources to promote the well-being of Latino immigrant populations.
Luis Javier has outstanding expertise in developing strategies, managing, and expanding programs and networks to generate research and improve communities' social development and global health. He has more than 15 years of experience leading efforts to promote access to health care and health education for vulnerable populations, including managing education, training, and research initiative programs and mobilizing government, academia, the private sector, and community-based organizations.
Luis Javier has strong communication and negotiation skills, proven success in establishing and developing coalitions to attain targets and complete projects on time, outstanding supervisory and coaching abilities, and effectively leading multidisciplinary and cross-functional teams to successful outcomes and program expansion. He has ample expertise as a senior event manager overseeing all aspects of planning and execution for internal and external meetings, policy briefings, and international events and conferences.
Alma Franco-Dominguez
Student Assistant, Latinx Research Center
Alma Franco-Dominguez is the Student Assistant for the Latinx Research Center (LRC); formerly, assistant for UCB's Latinx Social Science Pipeline Initiative (LSSPI). She is a dedicated third-year undergraduate student here at UC Berkeley, pursuing a bachelor’s degree in Sociology, with a minor in public policy and aspirations to work in public service and criminology with Latinx communities. As a first-generation Latina college student, she is committed to advancing social justice and improving socioeconomic conditions for those in Latinx communities, like herself, making this the perfect role to foster additional, relevant skills to be able to do so throughout her academic journey and beyond.
She brings with her a strong background in leadership, community engagement, and administrative support. With experience in event planning, marketing, website management, and outreach, she possesses the necessary skills to aid in and expand various LRC initiatives and resources. Her abilities in communication, adaptability, and collaboration acquired from various leadership, volunteer, and work experiences up to this point will aid her to support initiatives to empower underrepresented communities in this position.