Thursday, March 12, 2026 (5:00-6:30 pm Boston) in the Observatorio of Instituto Cervantes at Harvard
1100 Massachusetts Ave · 2nd floor · Cambridge, MA 02138 · USA
RSVP: https://forms.gle/hNsB79Poa9JWXAKZA or info-observatory@fas.harvard.edu
The Observatorio del Instituto Cervantes at Harvard University invites you to learn about the mission of the Academia Norteamericana de la Lengua Española (ANLE) from its Director, Nuria Morgado, and its Vice Director, Tina Escaja.
Coinciding with International Women's Day, we celebrate the fact that ANLE is a pioneer among academies in the Spanish-speaking world by recognizing and representing the work of all the women of ASALE (Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española) by placing two of its outstanding academics at the head of the institution.
There are more than 60 million Hispanics and more than 40 million Spanish speakers in the United States. This country has become one of the most dynamic spaces for the evolution of the Spanish language. In this context, ANLE plays a fundamental role in the study, promotion, and projection of Spanish in the US. This lecture will present the mission, main projects, and lines of work of ANLE, as well as its role within the international network of language academies. It will also address some of the challenges and opportunities facing Spanish in contemporary US society and highlight the importance of research and institutional collaboration for its future development.
Nuria Morgado, born in Barcelona, is Professor of Hispanic Studies at the City University of New York (CUNY). Her scholarship is distinguished by an interdisciplinary approach that brings together literary criticism, philosophy of language, and cultural studies. She has published widely on contemporary Spanish and Latin American literature, with particular emphasis on women’s writing, the poetics of thought, and the intersections of literature, philosophy, and language.
In March 2024, she made history as the first woman to become Director of the Academia Norteamericana de la Lengua Española (ANLE), marking a new chapter in the institutional presence of Spanish in the United States. A year later, in March 2025, she received the Trayectoria de Vida a la Excelencia Profesional, Mujer 2025 award, recognizing outstanding women leaders in the international cultural sphere.
She also serves as Director and Editor-in-Chief of the Boletín de la ANLE (BANLE), where she promotes scholarly dialogue and critical reflection on the present and future of Spanish in the United States.
Tina Escaja, also known by her creative name Alm@ Pérez, is Professor of Ibero-American Literature and Culture and Distinguished Professor of Spanish and Gender Studies at the University of Vermont. She has published extensively on gender, technology, and poetry in Ibero-American literature.
Widely regarded as a pioneer of Spanish-language electronic literature, Escaja often moves beyond the traditional printed page, creating multimedia works that incorporate robotics as well as virtual and augmented reality. These projects have been exhibited in galleries and museums around the world. Her teaching, research, and creative work have received numerous awards and have been translated into multiple languages. She has held several leadership roles, including serving as President and Vice President of the Asociación de Estudios de Género y Sexualidades, President of Feministas Unidas, Inc., and President and Vice President of the Asociación de Profesionales Españoles en EE. UU. (ALDEEU). She is also the founder of the Destructivist/a movement, which began at the grave of Vicente Huidobro in October 2014.
Escaja is currently a Corresponding Member of the Real Academia Española and a Full Member of the Academia Norteamericana de la Lengua Española, where she serves as Vice Director. Selected examples of her creative work can be experienced at www.tinaescaja.com.