Gaston Espinosa, assistant professor of religious studies, has been elected president of the La Comunidad of Latino Scholars of Religion at the American Academy of Religion (AAR), an interdisciplinary society composed of academics, professionals, graduate students, and other persons interested in promoting scholarly research and dialogue on Latino religions and society in the U.S., Mexico, Puerto Rico, and Canada.
As president, one of Espinosa's functions will be presiding over the organization's 2009 annual in Chicago one of the few multi-disciplinary Latino studies conferences on the West Coast. The annual meetings address recent developments in the field, welcoming participation from Mexico, Puerto Rico, Canada, and the United States.
La Comunidad often sponsors panel discussions and other events with scholars to share their research with other Latino scholars.
Espinosa has had published Latino Religions and Civic Activism in the United States (2005), Rethinking Latino/a Religions and Identity (2006), and the forthcoming Mexican American Religions: Spirituality, Activism, and Culture and Religion and the American Presidency: George Washington to George W. Bush. He has also authored and/or reviewed articles for The Journal of the American Academy of Religion, The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, Social Compass: International Review of the Sociology of Religion, and The Journal of Politics.