Rate My Professor Cecilia Tocaimaza-Hatch

Cecilia Tocaimaza-Hatch is an Associate Professor and Department Chair in the Department of World Languages and Literature at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. She earned a Ph.D. in Hispanic Linguistics from The University of Texas at Austin and an M.A. in Hispanic Linguistics from Brigham Young University. Specializing in Spanish linguistics, her research focuses on experiential learning, heritage language learners, and second language acquisition. Originally from Buenos Aires, Argentina, she incorporates service-learning into upper-level courses through projects such as translating materials for non-profits including NAMI and Family Housing Advisory Services, conducting reading programs for bilingual children, translating zoo signage, and organizing the Hispanic Cultural Festival with the Joslyn Museum of Art. She serves as Graduate Program Chair for certificates in Teaching Spanish to Heritage/Bilingual Learners and French.

Dr. Tocaimaza-Hatch's scholarship examines interactional competence, vocabulary learning, affordances, and intercultural reflection in service-learning and study abroad programs for Spanish L2 learners and heritage speakers. Key publications include Tocaimaza-Hatch, C. C., & Koike, D. A. (2024). Affordances in the international service-learning context for Spanish learners. Language Awareness; Koike, D., & Tocaimaza-Hatch, C. (2024). L2 interactional competence in a short-term service-learning and study abroad program. Study Abroad Research in Second Language Acquisition and International Education, 9(2), 157-187; Tocaimaza-Hatch, C. C., & Santo, J. (2020). Social interaction in the Spanish classroom: How proficiency and linguistic background impact vocabulary learning. Language Teaching Research; Tocaimaza-Hatch, C. C., & Bloom, M. (2019). Promoting intercultural thinking and reflection through U.S. history. Foreign Language Annals, 52(3), 507-528; and Tocaimaza-Hatch, C. C. (2019). Addressing the challenges of service-learning in broad access institutions of higher education. Journal of Applied Research in the Community College, 26(2), 99-110. She received the 2022 Outstanding Innovation in Teaching with Technology Award and the 2019 UNO Faculty Service Learning Award, and has served as Faculty Fellow for the Service Learning Academy. Her leadership includes organizing the Hispanic Linguistics Symposium 2024.