CAMPUS DIRECTORY

Education 

• Ph.D., Indiana University, Bloomington, 2022 

• M.A., California State University, Fullerton, 2014 

• B.A., California State University, Dominguez Hills, 2011 

Biography 

Gloria Lopez (she/her/ella) is an Assistant Professor of History, serves as the Faculty in Residence of El Centro Resource Center, and as Faculty Fellow for the Office of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion at Chico State. 

As a first-gen Latina scholar, Dr. Lopez is committed empowering Latinx students to thrive in higher education by fostering a sense of belonging in student-centered spaces and advocating for more equitable and inclusive institutional policies and practices. Most recently, she’s partnered with the Office of Faculty Development to co-lead the Advancing Hispanic/Latinx Student Success Faculty Learning Community and has served as HSI Faculty Fellow for the Honors Program. 

Research 

Dr. Lopez’s research focuses on the role that racial and ethnic diversity play in the politics of public memory and commemoration (including memorials, monuments, murals, museums, and heritage sites). The question at the heart of all her work is, who decides what histories are told and what History we teach? Her dissertation interrogates the development of El Pueblo de Los Angeles Historical Monument during the twentieth century. At Chico State, Dr. Lopez is currently developing a community-based oral history project with students that will center the histories of Latinx communities in the Chico State service region.  Research Areas: 20th Century United States; California History; Race and Ethnicity; Mexican American/Chicanx History; Public History; Oral History 

Teaching and Community Engagement 

Dr. Lopez teaches courses in History (HIST), in Chicanx/Latinx Studies (CHLX), and in the Honors Program (HNRS). 

• United States History 

• Mexican American History 

• Museums, Monuments, and Memorials: A Reckoning 

• Topics in Contemporary US History 

• Honors Ethnic Studies Methodologies 

In addition to attending national conferences, Dr. Lopez regularly collaborates with campus partners – like the Book in Common (BIC), the Chicano/Latino Council, the Conversations on Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (COEDI) series, among others – to share her research with the community. 

Recent presentations include: 

• “Deconstructing Monuments to Reconstruct History,” for BIC in 2023 

• “The Power of Names: From Sutter to Éstom Jámani,” for in BIC in 2023 

• “Inspiring a Sense of Belonging through Mexican Muralism,” for Hispanic Heritage Month in 2023 

• “Negotiating Ethnic Heritage in Los Angeles,” for COEDI in 2022 

• "Joy of Learning" in 2023 

Course offered:

 HIST 235 Mexican American History