MACLAS Executive Committee-
The MACLAS Constitution calls for an 11-member Executive Committee consisting of four officers (president, vice president, secretary, and treasurer); the immediately preceding ex-president; six at-large members; and the webmaster. We are always looking for interested volunteers and new ideas, so please be in touch if you might be interested in serving.
MACLAS Needs You!
The 2025-2026 Executive Committee is constituted as follows:
Meghan McInnis-Domínguez, President (2025-2026). Associate Professor of Spanish at the University of Delaware, Meghan’s research interests include medicine and literature in the early modern period, early modern Spanish novel, colonial Latin American historiography, Hispanic Transatlantic and Postcolonial Studies, and teaching with technology in the Hispanic Studies classroom. Aside from her research interests, she serves as a director of study abroad programs, leading winter and summer programs to Argentina, Mexico, and Spain.
Richard Balzano, Vice President (2025-2026). Assistant Professor of History at Simmons University and Instructor of History and Political Science at Springfield College, Richard completed his Ph.D. in History with the University of Reading (UK). His doctoral research examined US-Guatemalan petro-diplomacy in the twentieth century, while his ongoing research encompasses inter-American petro-diplomacy, media bias, and the relationship between human rights, foreign aid, sanctions, and international law.
Amanda Frantz-Mamani, Past President (2024-2025). Chair of the History, Politics, Languages, and Cultures Department at Edinboro University, her interests include Colonial and Modern Latin America, especially the use of imagery in popular culture, Women's Studies, Latinx Culture, and the relationships of Power and Identity.
David Mongor-Lizarrabengoa, Secretary (2025-2026). Assistant Professor of Spanish at Wor-Wic Community College in Salisbury, MD, David holds a BA & MA in Spanish from Montclair State University, two MA degrees in English and films studies from San Diego, and a Ph.D. in comparative literature at Western University in London, Ontario. His research primarily focuses on contemporary Latin American and Lusophone literature and film. Currently, he is editing a volume titled Hispanic & Lusophone Voices of Africa. He has taught Spanish, English, Portuguese, and Basque language courses at Wor-Wic, Montclair State, and Western University and has been a MACLAS member since 2011.
Michael J. Schroeder, Treasurer (2026-2027). Professor Emeritus of History at Lebanon Valley College in Annville, PA, Michael specializes in 20th century Nicaraguan history, especially the period of US military intervention in the 1920s & 30s. A member of the Academia de Geografía e Historia de Nicaragua, he is author & administrator of the digital historical archive www.SandinoRebellion.com, co-author of a widely-used textbook on 20th century world history, and author of numerous articles & chapters in his areas of expertise (online vita here). schroede@lvc.edu.
Ann Warner Ault (2024-2027). Assistant Professor of Spanish at The College of New Jersey, Ann received her M.A. and Ph.D. in Spanish from Columbia University with a focus on Latin American literature and culture. She has presented and published on a range of topics including avant-garde art and literature, community-engaged learning, digital humanities, and study abroad. Ann is currently collaborating with Dr. Robert McGreevey, Isabel Kentengian and several community organizations in Trenton to implement a large-scale oral history project with Trenton’s Latinx community.
Carlos Mamani (2024-2027). Peruvian and Aymara by birth, Carlos Mamani has special interest in indigenous cultures, particularly in the Andes, as well as globalization, popular culture, and relationships of power. A Latin Americanist with a focus on the colonial and twenty and twenty-first centuries, Carlos completed his bachelor’s degree from Brown University and his master’s and Ph.D. at the University of Cincinnati. His research also includes Latino cultures in the U.S. centered on issues of immigration, cultural representation, and marginalization. He has taught at Gannon University since 1991.
David M. K. Sheinin (2024-2027) Professor of History at Trent University (Canada), serves as Académico Correspondiente of the Academia Nacional de la Historia de la República Argentina, and as a former MACLAS president. His first MACLAS conference presentations were as a doctoral student. David's most recent book, co-edited with C. Nathan Hatton, is Statues and Legacies of Combat Athletes in the Americas (Lexington, 2024).
Maria Alejandra Aguilar Dornelles, Outreach & Communications Chair (Non-Executive Committee Position). maguilardornelle@fau.edu