• Casa Main Logo

    Casa de las Américas at LaGuardia Community College is the first center at a CUNY community college offering comprehensive academic and career services to Latinx students from all countries of the Americas.

    LaGuardia Community College (LAGCC) is a microcosm of Queens’ abundant mix of ethnicities, nationalities, cultures, and races, particularly those of Latinx heritage – its student population represents almost every Latinx country in the Americas. La Casa pursues partnerships with community organizations and institutions across New York and beyond to engage its students, faculty, and staff and Queens residents of Latinx heritage and other intersectional communities. We aim to provide opportunities to educate and advance Latinx community members and support them as they become lifelong learners, professionals and activists, contributing towards the betterment of society.










  • Goals


    La Casa will provide a welcoming space to celebrate, engage with, and learn the cultural richness of our students and community members – particularly undocumented, LGBTQIA+, Afro-Latino and Indigenous peoples, and other often historically excluded and underserved members. Together we will promote and support diversity, equity, and inclusion while providing opportunities for Latinx community members to enter, advance, and excel in multifaceted professional arenas La Casa hopes to build global connections with academic centers, institutes, and community organizations to empower Latinx communities and foster continuing awareness and pride in the Latinx heritage.

  • Staff outside of the new Casa de las Americas office




  • Student learning

  • Focus Areas


    In order to achieve our goals, La Casa will partner with career services and the Division of Adult and Continuing Education (ACE) to help Latinx students take advantage of research assistantships and internships in various field-focused institutions. We will work toward developing study abroad opportunities and promote faculty, staff, and student research on Latinx history, culture, politics, etc. and participation of Latinx members in STEM related fields.

    Additional resources you will find at La Casa include:

    • Mentoring
    • Conferences
    • Exhibits
    • Performances
    • Film screenings
    • Workshops
    • Networking events
    • Spanish Language and Continuing Education programming




  • People attending an event




  • Casa Open House





  • Contact


    Room M-141
    Phone: (718) 482-5995
    Email: casa@lagcc.cuny.edu

    Office Hours
    Tuesdays: 10AM – 6:00PM
    Wednesdays: 12PM – 5:00PM
    Thursdays: 10AM – 6PM


    Get Connected


    Instagram: @lacasa_lagcc
    Twitter: lacasa_lagcc



    Co-Directors
    Dr. Sonia Alejandra Rodríguez received her PhD in English from the University of California Riverside and completed her undergraduate degree in English and Latinx Studies at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Her areas of teaching and research are twentieth and twenty-first century American literature, children’s literature, Latinx Studies, and Gender and Sexuality studies. She is currently an Associate Professor of English at LaGuardia.

    Dr. Ryan Mann-Hamilton received his PhD in Anthropology from the CUNY Graduate Center with a concentration in Africana Studies, and holds a Masters in Environmental Systems and an undergraduate degree in International Studies from Humboldt State University. His areas of teaching and research focus on the Caribbean and Latin America and engage with multiple themes around displacement, nation making, environmental justice, AfroLatinx social movements and food sovereignty. He is currently an Associate Professor of Social Science at LaGuardia.

    Office Manager
    Stefania Gonzalez
    A LaGuardia graduate, Stefania started as a College Assistant at the LaGuardia Community College Foundation in 2017. Since then she’s helped coordinate and manage projects like Honors Internship Program, MANA Entrepreneurship Class, President’s Society, President’s Society Environment, and many more. Stefania is now bringing her long standing administrative experience to La Casa where she will continue to provide support to faculty, staff, and students alike.





  • Executive Committee

    • Kenneth Adams, President, LaGuardia Community College
    • Soraya Ciego-Lemur, Interim Director, LaGuardia Wagner Archives
    • Milena Cuellar, Professor, Department of Mathematics, Engineering, and Computer Science
    • Hector Fernandez, Professor, Business and Technology Department
    • Liesl Fores-Iza, Communications Director, Division of Adult and Continuing Education
    • Belkis Gonzalez, Associate Professor, English Department
    • John Hunt, Interim Assistant Dean for Pre-College Academic Programs, Division of Adult and Continuing Education
    • Ryan Mann-Hamilton, Co-Director, Associate Professor, Social Science Department
    • Sonia Alejandra Rodriguez, Co-Director, Associate Professor, English Department
    • Rebecca Tally, Associate Professor, Social Science Department
    • Ingrid Veras​, Associate Professor, Natural Sciences Department
  • Staff in a meeting




  • LaGaurdia Community College

  • Familiares de la Casa


    La Casa will be supported by Familiares de la Casa, LaGuardia faculty and staff who will work on a volunteer basis to help the Co-Directors organize events and perform community outreach.


    Familiares de la Casa
    • Pablo Avila, Associate Director, ePorfolio and Digital Learning (Working Group Member)
    • Anita Baksh, Associate Professor, English Department
    • Olga Calderon, Professor, Natural Sciences Department
    • Loretta Capuano, Director, Student Information Services (Working Group Member)
    • Cheri Carr, Associate Professor, Humanities
    • Soraya Ciego-Lemur, Interim Director, LaGuardia and Wagner Archives
    • Milena C. Cuellar, Professor, Math, Engineering and Computer Science Department (Working Group Member)
    • Hugo Fernandez, Professor, Humanities Department (Working Group Member)
    • Hector Fernandez, Professor, Business and Technology Department
    • Alcira Forero-Pena, Adjunct Assistant Professor, Social Sciences Department
    • Liesl Fores-Iza, Director of Communications, Division of Adult and Continuing Education (Working Group Member)
    • Belkis Gonzalez, Associate Professor, English Department
    • Ana Maria Hernandez, Professor, Education and Language Acquisition Department (Working Group Member)
    • Elsie Hernandez, Administrative Assistant, Marketing & Communications Department
    • Rosa Herrera-Rodriguez, Senior College Lab Tech and Adjunct Assistant Professor, Education and Language Acquisition Department
    • John Hunt, Interim Assistant Dean, Division of Adult and Continuing Education
    • Ian McDermott, Associate Professor, Library Department
    • Deborah Nibot, Admissions Manager, Office of Admissions
    • Wendy Nicholson, Executive Director, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
    • Arianna Pina, Assistant Director, Student Financial Services
    • Joy Sanchez-Taylor, Associate Professor, English Department (Working Group Member)
    • Javier Serna, Lecturer, Business and Technology Department
    • Elizabeth Streich, Public Relations Manager, Marketing & Communications Department
    • Rebecca Tally, Associate Professor, Social Sciences Department (Working Group Member)
    • Nathan Tosh, Program Coordinator, Women’s Center and LGBTQIA Safe Zone Hub
    • Ingrid Veras, Associate Professor, Natural Sciences Department (Working Group Member)
    • Nayelli Valencia, Chief of Staff, Office of the President