Luis David Gaytán-Soto

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Contact Information

-Literatures, cultures, and linguistics building
-Office #4024
lgaytan2@illinois.edu

Office Hours

Fall 2023
-Wednesday 8:30 AM to 9:30 AM
-Friday 10:15 AM to 11:15 AM
- And by appointment
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Biography

Luis David Gaytán-Soto is a 1st generation Mexican-American graduate student who was born in Southern California but lived in Villa de Alvarez, Colima, Mexico, between the ages of 7 and 11. As a McNair Scholar, Luis graduated from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona (CPP) majoring in Spanish with minors in history and philosophy. That same year, Luis joined UIUC to pursue graduate studies in Hispanic Linguistics. As a first generation student, Luis is aware the impact that being a first gen student has on ones self. Navigating higher education can be daunting and confusing. As a result, Luis is dedicated to giving back to his community and students. Hence, Luis has served as a mentor to 4 students from his alma mater, 1 from UCLA, and 1 from UIUC. In his spare time he enjoys playing the diatonic accordion.  

Research Interests

  • Instructed heritage literacy development & language acquisition
  • Non-college educated heritage speakers
  • Cognitive processes in language learning
  • Phonological Awareness Training 
  • Bilingualism 
  • Heritage classroom instruction 
  • Writing vs. typing

Education

  • M.A. in Hispanic Linguistics, The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC)
  • B.A. (Cum Laude) in Spanish Linguistics and Literature with minors in History and Philosophy. California State Polytechnic University, Pomona (CPP), 2018-2022

Awards and Honors

(•= University Internal) (†=External)

Fellowships

  1. Fall '24-Spring 26' Doctoral Merit Fellowship | UIUC • $50,000
  2. Fall 2023-Career Exploration Fellowship | UIUC • $5,000
  3. Summer 2023-Summer FLAS Fellowship | European Union Center | UIUC • $7,500
  4. Fall 2022-IGNITE Fellowship | Teach for America † $2,200
  5. 2022-2023 Aspire Illinois Masters Fellowship | UIUC • $20,000
  6. Summer 2022-SPI Summer Research Fellowship | UIUC • $4,500
  7. Spring 2022-IGNITE Fellowship | Teach for America † $1,200
  8. Summer 2021-Summer Research Fellowship | Northwestern University † $5,000

Awards

  1. Spring 2024 Xiaohui Zhang Diversity & Community Engagement Award | UIUC • $500 
  2. Spring 2024 We-Cu Community Engaged Scholar Award | UIUC •
  3. Spring 2024 Best Hispanic Linguistics Abstract | Georgetown University †
  4. Fall 2023 Graduate Student Leadership Award-Master's Student | UIUC • $500
  5. Fall 2022 Chancellor’s Doctoral Incentive Program | Cal State University System †
  6. Fall 2021 Research Distinction Award | CPP •    

Research Grants

  1. Fall 2023 Graduate College Master's Project Travel Grant | UIUC • $500
  2. Spring 2022 McNair Scholars Research Award | CPP • $400

Conference Travel Grants

  1. Spring 2024 Department of Spanish & Portuguese Travel Grant | UIUC • $320
  2. Fall 2023-Department of Spanish & Portuguese Travel Grant | UIUC •  $647
  3. Fall 2023-Committee on Ethnic Diversity in Linguistics Grant | LSA† $1,000
  4. Spring 2022 Conference Travel Grant | CPP • $600

Co-Applied Conference Travel Grants For Undergraduate Research Assistants

  1. Spring 2024 Conference Travel Grant | Office of Undergraduate Research | UIUC • $250

Scholarships

  1. Fall 2022-Inspire Initiatives Scholarship | NAACP † $5,000
  2. Summer 2022-Latino Faculty Association Leadership Scholarship | CPP • $1,000
  3. Spring 2022-McNair GRE Scholarship | CPP • $200
  4. Spring 2021-Cecil B. Brown Scholarship | CPP • $6,000
  5. Spring 2021-English & Modern Languages Scholarship | CPP • $500

Courses Taught

  • SPAN 204: Advanced Grammar in Context (Spring 2024)
  • LLS 100: Intro to Latina/Latino Studies (Spring 2024)
  • LAS 112: First Year College Success (Fall 2023) *co-taught
  • SPAN 141: Introduction to Spanish Grammar (Fall 2023)
  • LAS 292: Global Perspectives in Cross-Cultural Contexts (Spring 2023)
  • LAS 291: Global Perspectives for Inter-Cultural Learning (Fall 2022)

Recent Publications

(2023) Llombart-Huesca, A., Gaytán-Soto, L. “Spanish Heritage Language Learners: Reading difficulties and spelling errors”. Spanish as a Heritage Language Journal, Vol. 3, No. 2, Pg. 65-87. https://journals.upress.ufl.edu/shl/article/view/1947