#  Américo Mendoza-Mori 

Spring 2027 Custer Visiting Scholar

 

 

 



   ![Americo](/sites/g/files/omnuum12451/files/styles/hwp_4_5__320x400/public/2026-04/7.png?itok=8D8J5mqh) 

 



 





 

Américo Mendoza-Mori (Ica, Perú) is an Assistant Professor of Romance Languages at St. Olaf College. His work bridges literary, sociolinguistic, and cultural studies, with a focus on Latin America, U.S. Latinidad, and Indigeneity. His recent book *Cusco post Inca: cómo se vive, imagina y construye cultura en una ciudad andina contemporánea* (2026) examines cultural production, policy, and citizenship in the historic Inka capital.

Mendoza-Mori’s research at DRCLAS examines the global presence and impact of Quechua, an Indigenous language family with about 10 million speakers, often framed as a heritage of the past, in a transnational context that connects the Andes with migrant communities in the United States and Europe. It traces how youth creators, educators, and cultural collectives organize and lead public initiatives to advance linguistic empowerment and strengthen Indigenous identities.

He holds a BA from Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos and a PhD from the University of Miami. His research has been published in venues such as *PMLA*, the *International Journal of the Sociology of Language*, and *The Cambridge Handbook of Multilingual Education*. His work has been presented at the United Nations and featured by the Library of Congress, *The New York Times*, BBC, NPR, and TEDx. Mendoza-Mori has received teaching awards from Harvard and the University of Pennsylvania and has also been recognized by the City of Boston and the Massachusetts House of Representatives. He has served as a cultural consultant for film and media, including Paramount’s *Dora and the Lost City of Gold* (2019).



 

 

 





 

 

- ## Academic Year
    
     [2026-2027](/academic-year/2026-2027)
- ## Location
    
     [Cambridge](/locations/cambridge-office)
- ## People
    
     [Visiting Scholar](/people/visiting-scholar)
- ## Scholars/Fellows
    
     [Custer Visiting Scholars & Fellows](/scholarsfellows/custer-visiting-scholars-fellows)