Diego Ponce

ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF HISPANIC LITERATURE AND CULTURE
Office: CHS 282
Phone: 956-882-8894
E-Mail: diego.ponce@utb.edu

Bio

Born in Havana, Cuba into an extended family that consisted of four generations. Both of his parents were theater professionals; among his fondest memories are seeing mom on stage while seating with grandma in the audience. As he was too ill throughout childhood to attend school, he had a private tutor, (a young lady by the name of Selfa), to whom he remains forever grateful. He first read Cervantes’ Don Quixote when he was eight years old and fell in love with the crazy antics of the immortal title character. That reading experience led to a life-long love affair with all literature and culture. He is an avid fan of film, theater and the performing arts.

Following two successful diverse career paths in the United States, he decided to pursue his passion for Hispanic letters. As an undergraduate, he immersed himself in the British tutorial approach to education of one-on-one with a professor. In his academic sojourn, he served for four years as director of study abroad programs at King’s College in New York (an experience that included extensive international travel) and, thereafter, for five years as lecturer of Spanish language, literature, culture and translation at SUNY Binghamton. He is now eager to share in the progressive vision of the Modern Languages Department at UTB/TSC, and to contribute to the learning experience of the students.

INTERESTS
20th century Hispanic-American and Caribbean narrative; magical realism; Cuban culture, music and film; Hispanic identity studies; Cervantes’ Don Quixote; Spanish Golden Age literature and culture; literary theory; Spanish-English literary and non-literary translation.
EDUCATION

Ph.D. (Candidate), SUNY Binghamton. Doctoral thesis: Cuba: An Island Nation in Crisis of Identity.

M.A., SUNY Binghamton, 1997.

Graduate Certificate in Spanish-English Literary Translation, SUNY Binghamton, 1996.

B.A., SUNY Empire State College, 1992.



PROJECTED COURSES AT UTB/TSC
Graduate: 20th Century Hispanic-American Literature; Literary Theory; The Novel and Film of the Cuban Revolution; Cervantes’ Don Quixote; Spanish-English Translation. Undergraduate: Hispanic Civilization; Masterpieces of Hispanic-American Literature; Cuban Cinema; Life in Castro’s Cuba; The Picaresque Novel.