Nilsa Lasso-von Lang
Associate Professor of Spanish and Associate Director of Admissions & Coordinator of Multicultural Recruitment
Education
- B.A., M.A., University of Northern Iowa
- Ph.D., University of Arizona
Contact
Email: lasso-vonlangn@moravian.edu
Phone: 610-861-1393
Office: Comenius Hall, Room 408
Areas of Research and/or Expertise
Spanish Language and Cultures, Central American Literature and Cultures, Linguistic Varieties/Language in Contact and Changes, Translation and Interpretation, and Spanish for the Professions.
Scholarship Activities
Biography
Dr. Lasso-von Lang is a native of Panama, Republic of Panama. She joined the Moravian University faculty in 2002. Her Major area of concentration is Contemporary Spanish American Literature. Her secondary areas are Pre-Columbian Epoch to Independence and Contemporary Peninsular Literature. She has received intensive training on Linguistics, Second Language Acquisition, Literacy Theory, Service Learning, and Language and Technology. Dr. Lasso-von Lang teaches courses at all levels: Introductory and Intermediate Spanish, Spanish for Heritage Speakers, Hispanic Literature and Cultures, Latin American Popular Culture and Traditions, Central American Literature, Latino/a Literature in the U.S., Conversation and Composition, Linguistic Varieties and Language Contact in the Hispanic World, and Bilingualism. She also teaches Spanish for specific purposes: Translation and Interpretation, and Spanish for the Professions. Dr. Lasso-von Lang developed and implemented the first Spanish for Health Professionals Certificate Program at MU. Additionally, she has contributed to the core curriculum by teaching and advising in the First-Year Writing Program and the Adult Certification Program. Furthermore, she has taught various independent study courses and has served as Faculty Coordinator on internship programs. She has directed Honors and SOAR projects, and study abroad programs in Panama City, Panama and Puebla, Mexico.
Throughout the years, Dr. Lasso-von Lang has embarked on various scholarly activities. She has published books and articles on Central American literature and cultures, and linguistic varieties in the Hispanic world: "Renacimiento de identidad afrodescendiente en la obra de tres poetas centroamericanas," Modern Latin American Poetry, special issue of Hispanic Journal (2018); "Corpus Christi en La Villa de Los Santos: Encolpium sagrado, cultural y popular," SJML (2015); Variedades lingüísticas en el mundo hispano: El español en contacto con otras lenguas (2005, 2011); Bertalicia Peralta: Life and Works (2007); "Evolution of Panamanian Poetry: 1950s to Present" (2009); and "Feminism and Catholicism in Latin America: A Personal Experience," a book chapter on Reconciling Catholicism and Feminism?, Notre Dame University Press (2003). Forthcoming publications are "Realidad, retos y logros de la interculturalidad en las comunidades garifunas de Honduras;" and Gloria Guardia (Panama-Nicaragua): Critical Approaches, one of the volumes in the series Essential Writers of Central America. In addition, she has presented papers at national and international conferences. In 2019, she was a special guest at the VI Congreso Internacional de Literatura Centroamericana, Universidad Tecnológica de Panamá (UTP), where she presented the paper "La metáfora como instrumento cognoscitivo en Fugacidades en un panal de fuegos de Gloriela Carles Lombardo."
She supports the University's overall mission and goals by serving on University-wide elected and appointed committees. Dr. Lasso-von Lang has served on Committee on Committees and Faculty Handbook, Assessment of Student Learning Committee, Arts and Lectures, Hispanic Heritage & Latinx Club, Humanities Connections Task Force, Faculty Development and Research Committee, and Learning in Common Committee/General Education Program. She also served on the President's Diversity Council for several years. Currently, she is serving on the Diversity Enrollment Initiative Task Force, Theater Advisory Group, First-Year Faculty Advising Program, Global Task Force - Subgroup "Globalizing Institutional Culture," and MU Partnership Work Groups.