Faculty

John Chaimov

Associate Professor of German, Chair

B.A., University of California, San Diego
M.A., Ph.D., University of Chicago

Research and academic interests:
Migration and cultural adaptation, Human Rights, Human Rights in Southeast Asia, volunteering and “volunteerism.”

Special programs involved with at Coe:
Off-Campus Study, Committee on Internationalization, Coe Human Rights Advocates.

Personal interests:
Tutoring at the local immigrant education center, volunteering at the immigration legal clinic, bicycling, sexual-assault prevention, bread baking.

Favorite Coe tradition:
Students doing good things in the community.

Why have you chosen to teach at Coe?
Coe students inspire me with their ownership of how campus runs, their boldness in going to live in the farthest corners of the globe, their hunger to learn, their dedication to making a difference in the lives of their friends and of neighbors in the community. Every day I think how lucky I am to spend most of my day here.

Joyce Janca-Aji

Associate Professor of French

B.A., Southern Illinois University-Carbondale
M.A., Ph. D., Indiana University-Bloomington

Email: jjanca@coe.edu

Research and academic interests: 20th-century and contemporary women's writing in French, nondual approaches to literature, and translation and contemplative studies.

Special programs involved in with at Coe:
May Term courses in Paris, Academic Coordinator of Gender and Sexuality Studies, organizer for the Teaching Translation Conference (2018) and co-coordinator of the Language-in-Community Summer Seminar (2018).

Favorite Coe tradition:
The Drag Show! It seems like the whole campus comes to support the LGTBQ community here - and has way too much fun doing so.

Why have you chosen to teach at Coe?
I wanted to teach what I love somewhere that would allow me to really get to know my students. I appreciate the warmth and the support of the entire community here- and that I can be creative in how I design courses to appeal to the strengths and interests of my students.

Personal interests: Experimenting with food, time in the woods, poetry, knitting socks, painting, and long, long novels.

Laissa M Rodríguez Moreno Laissa M Rodríguez Moreno

Assistant Professor of Spanish

B.A., Universidad Nacional de Colombia
M.A., Ph.D., University of Wisconsin, Madison

Email: lrodriguez@coe.edu
Office: Hickok Hall 203C

Research and academic interests:
Contemporary Latin American literature, culture and history with an emphasis on theater and performance studies. I also have a strong interest in history, political theory, graphic novel, children’s literature, and visual studies.

Personal interests:
I enjoy multidisciplinary collaborative work with the Arts –Drawing, dancing and performances, and theater productions. Good conversations, Bogotá, my family and friends.

Special programs involved with at Coe:
Coordinator of the May Term in Spain, Alicante. I also teach in the History department classes related to Latin America.

Matt Johnson

Visiting Assistant Professor of Spanish

B.A., University of Florida
M.A., Ph.D., Indiana University-Bloomington

Email: majohnson@coe.edu
Office: Hickok Hall 203D

Research and academic interests: Modern and contemporary Latin American art, literature, and culture; the history and legacy of modernism and the avant-garde in Latin America; hemispheric migration studies; neoliberalism and the sociology of globalization.

Personal interests: All kinds of outdoor activities; cooking and spending time in the kitchen; spending time with friends and family; exploring Cedar Rapids and Eastern Iowa.

Special programs involved with at Coe: Coordinator of Lunch-olés Spanish Conversation Table.

Why have you chosen to teach at Coe? I appreciate having the chance to participate in life on a liberal arts campus. I am able to work with students from all over the world, develop courses that combine my interests with those of my students, and also continue to work on my research. The Coe community has been incredibly supportive and makes me feel welcome each day I step on campus!

Esperanza Munoz Perez

Esperanza Muñoz-Perez

Adjunct Instructor of Spanish

Email: emunozperez@coe.edu
Office: Hickok Hall 104D

Research and academic interests:Esperanza Muñoz Pérez, a native of Spain, teaches all levels of the Spanish language and has been an educator for 20 years. All aspects of language and its intricacies intrigue her, whether related to her experience as a language professor or as an interpreter and translator. She arrived in Iowa in 1994 after living previously in Scotland and in the Pacific. Esperanza's passion for history, culture, and language was richly rewarded while working with 18th-century Spanish documents for the Micronesian Research Center at the University of Guam. Her love for Romance languages led her to study Latin, Portuguese, Italian, French language and Literature, as well as completing PhD courses in Medieval Spanish Literature. A strong interest in languages and cultures has always been and will continue to be an important part of her academic and personal life.

Belkis Suárez

Adjunct Instructor of Spanish

B.A., Universidad Central de Venezuela
M.A., Ph.D., University of Florida

Email: bsuarez@coe.edu
Office: Hickok Hall 104D

Research and academic interests: My research integrates contemporary Spanish American literature, violence, film and social theories. I seek to understand how representations of urban spaces through discourses of violence in literature and film can be used to facilitate our understanding of broad social processes. I have been doing research connecting films and literary works with politics in Latin America, especially in Venezuela since 2008.

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