USC.edu

Cathleen Mejico, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Scholar - Research Associate
Cathleen Mejico, Ph.D.
Pronouns She / Her / Hers Email ccaldero@usc.edu

Education

  • Ph.D. American Studies and Ethnicity, University of Southern California, 2025
  • M.A. American Studies and Ethnicity, University of Southern California, 2022
  • B.A. Ethnicity, Race, and Migration, Yale University, 2017
    • Postdoctoral Scholar – Research Associate, University of Southern California, 2025-2026

  • Other Employment

    • Research Assistant (Inaugural), USC Center for Latinx and Latin American Studies, 04/2021 – 05/2025

  • Summary Statement of Research Interests

    Dr. Cathleen Mejico is a Postdoctoral Research Associate in the Department of American Studies & Ethnicity at the University of Southern California. She holds a Ph.D. in American Studies & Ethnicity and is an oral historian. Her research focuses on U.S. Southwest suburban politics, geography, and culture. She examines everyday sites where working class and migrant-based peoples have formed alternative social geographies rooted in mutual support, cultural affirmation, and collective empowerment despite structural constraints on their mobility and resources.

    Dr. Mejico’s home of the Northeast San Fernando Valley – the organizers, mentors, neighbors, artists, and families who have taught her the meaning and brilliance of community and community spaces – inspire her thinking and dedication to preserving local history.

    Research Keywords

    Ethnic Studies, 20th Century U.S. History, Urban & Suburban History, Cultural Geography

    • (fall 2020) AMST 101. Race and Class in Los Angeles
    • (fall 2020) AMST 101. Race and Class in Los Angeles
    • (spring 2021) AMST 101. Race and Class in Los Angeles
    • (spring 2021) AMST 101. Race and Class in Los Angeles
    • (fall 2021) AMST 101. Race and Class in Los Angeles
    • (fall 2021) AMST 101. Race and Class in Los Angeles
    • (spring 2022) AMST 101. Race and Class in Los Angeles
    • (spring 2022) AMST 101. Race and Class in Los Angeles
    • (fall 2024) AMST 101. Race and Class In Los Angeles
    • (fall 2024) AMST 101. Race and Class in Los Angeles
    • (spring 2025) ENGL 174. Reading the Heart: Emotional Intelligence and the Humanities
    • (spring 2025) ENGL 174. Reading the Heart: Emotional Intelligence and the Humanities
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