Current Course Offerings
Courses in Latin American, Caribbean, and Latinx Studies explore an interdisciplinary field of study, providing students the tools that allow them to succeed in a global marketplace—the ability to think comparatively and critically and to engage with the largest demographic populations in the Western Hemisphere.
Spring 2027
LACX 1381: Trouble in Paradise: Law, Tourism, and Globalization in the Caribbean
M/W 2:30-3:45
Prof Ruiz
The Caribbean has long been portrayed as a tropical paradise — a haven of pristine beaches, vibrant cultures, and endless leisure. This course interrogates that myth. Anchored in themes of globalization, tourism, political economy, and law, we analyze how colonial legacies, governance failures, and legal frameworks structure dispossession, labor exploitation, and ecological precarity across the region. Case studies range from cruise ship economies and mega-festivals to Afro-Caribbean maroon communities and UNESCO heritage sites. The course includes a required immersive experience in Cartagena, Colombia over spring break, where the frameworks developed in the classroom are tested on the ground — in an Afro-Colombian fishing village, a centuries-old maroon community, and one of the most unequal cities in the Americas. [3] (INT) (CORE: C, E). Available for elective credit in the Latin American, Caribbean, and Latinx Studies major/minor. Available for credit toward the Law, History, and Society (LHS) major/minor. Enrollment by instructor permission; application required.
Note: Class includes international or domestic travel and enrolled students are expected to have all travel documents ready at the start of spring semester (passports or other documentation). Course will require application and instructor approval. Email Professor Jesus Ruiz [jesus.ruiz@vanderbilt.edu] for information. Students will be charged a non-refundable course fee of $5,000, inclusive of roundtrip airfare, following students accepting their space in the course. Students eligible for financial aid should contact their Financial Aid Officer to discuss funding options.
LACX 1469: Fútbol-Soccer: Culture, Gender, and Belonging
M/W/F 1:25-2:15
Prof Castilho
This course explores culture, politics, and history through a focus on sports. Our units focus on fan culture, the sporting media, women’s soccer, and fútbol and immigration. With the Women’s World Cup set for Brazil in 2027, we will also discuss the social and sporting implications of this event for Latin America. Assignments range from in-class essays and exams; to group presentations, and a wiki-education project. [3] (CORE: C, E). Available for credit for the Sports and Society minor.
CORE 2500: Bad Bunny and Puerto Rican Resistance
T/TH 9:30-10:45
Prof Selcke
Benito Martínez Ocasio, better known as Bad Bunny, has become a global Latin music star. This course explores what analyzing Bad Bunny can teach us in Latinx Studies about the intersections of popular culture, race, and politics. We will explore what his music teaches us about U.S. empire and Puerto Rican identity. We will also pay particular attention to the politics of race, gender, and colonialism in Bad Bunny¿s performances. Topics include the history of Puerto Rico and its colonial past and present (tourism, debt crisis, hurricanes) and the Puerto Rican diaspora in New York City. [3] (CORE: A, E). Available for elective credit for the Latin American, Caribbean, and Latinx Studies major/minor.
LACX 3500: Climate Catastrophe? History of Environmental Law in Latin America and the Caribbean
T/TH 1:15-2:30
Prof Selcke
This class will take a historical approach to the topic of environmental law and policy in Latin America and the Caribbean, exploring how laws and policies have changed from the colonial period to the present. We will look at the ways in which elites have used laws to secure greater access to land and resources often at the expense of marginalized communities. We will also examine how marginalized communities have navigated and/or resisted these often biased laws and policies. Through an examination of this history, we will gain a greater understanding of the impetus behind and impact of environmentally-focused laws that we can use to grapple with environmental laws today. [3] (CORE A, C) (LE: INT). Available for elective credit for the Latin American, Caribbean, and Latinx Studies major/minor. Available for credit toward the Law, History, and Society (LHS) major/minor.
Fall 2026
LACX 1201: Introduction to Latin American, Caribbean, and Latinx Studies
M/W 8:40-9:55
Professor Ruiz
This introductory course examines Latin America as a foundational region in the making of the modern world. Students explore colonialism, slavery, revolution, migration, culture, and political economy to understand how Latin American histories shape global systems of race, labor, governance, and identity. The course introduces interdisciplinary approaches from history, anthropology, law, and cultural studies to analyze how power, resistance, and belonging operate across the hemisphere. (CORE C, E) (LE: P)
LACX 2101: Diasporic Remittances: Latinx Markets and the Global Supply Chain
T/Th 1:15-2:30
Professor Selcke
This course examines the challenges and successes of emerging logistics hubs like Miami, Santo Domingo, San Juan, and Havana. Intersections between supply chain management, trade policies, and remittances, both material and cultural. Available for credit in the Business minor. [3] (CORE D, E) (LE: SBS)
CORE 2500: A Campus as a Garden Classroom
T/Th 11:00-12:15
Professor Dickins de Girón
This Core 2500 course centers on student engagement with the CLACX Ethnobotanical Garden. Located on the west side of campus, the garden houses forty species of plants native to the Americas and serves as a unique educational resource for Vanderbilt students, local K-12 teachers and students, and the Nashville community. Using the garden as our classroom, the course explores how plants shape the development of human cultural values and social organization, uses of plants in medicinal and culinary traditions, and the role of human migrations in the global distribution of plants. Class discussions and reading assignments providing perspectives from anthropology, history, ethnobotany and pharmacology provide students with a foundational knowledge of specific plants and contextualize them within unit themes. Students who are interested in gardening and learning about culture, trade, and history through plants will enjoy this class. [3] (CORE A, C). Available for elective credit in the Latin American, Caribbean, and Latinx Studies major/minor.