Marissa López, English Associate Professor, named one of first-ever Mellon/ACLS Scholars & Society Fellow
Professor López's project is a collaboration between UCLA and the Los Angeles Public Library to bring Mexican America to life
Associate Professor Marissa López is one of the recipients of the inaugural 2019 American Council of Learned Society(ACLS)/Mellon Scholars & Society Fellowship. The fellowship provides faculty, who work with and advise graduate students, the opportunity to usher projects in the humanities beyond the academy as well as to work within their campuses to strengthen doctoral curricular innovation.
Professor López’s project, Picturing Mexican America: A Digital, Visual, Networked History of the Future is a collaboration between the Los Angeles Public Library and UCLA to use geolocation technology to display historical images of Mexican Los Angeles relevant to a user’s coordinates through a mobile app. Guided by librarians at both institutions, student researchers will comb LAPL and UCLA archives for photographs, maps, and historical documents. In consultation with public outreach staff at both UCLA and LAPL, this project is developing user engagement strategies that digital humanities staff at UCLA are bringing to technical fruition. Collaborators will work with LAPL event coordinators and branch librarians on events designed to introduce library users of all ages to the app, inviting their reflections on Los Angeles’ rich, Mexican history and its relevance to both their own lives and contemporary politics.