Iowa is a multiethnic, multiracial and multilingual state.  

Spanish is not a foreign language. It is the second most spoken language in Iowa, as more than 130,000 Iowa residents speak Spanish at home.

Latinos and Hispanics comprise 6.3% of Iowa’s total population. Not all Latinas/os/xs speak Spanish.

The Portuguese language and Lusophone cultures are crucial to Iowa and the United States. 25,520 Portuguese speakers live in the Midwest and 692,500 in the United States.

We, the faculty of the Department of Spanish and Portuguese, are committed to continuing to promote understanding of and respect for different Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking cultures in Iowa, the United States, and throughout the world.

We strive to foster an inclusive community.

We aspire to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion in all aspects of our teaching, research, and service.

The principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) are fundamental to the mission of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at the University of Iowa, as we conduct our work in the context of the whole of humanity.

• In our teaching, we draw on, explore, and question every facet of human experience and understanding.
• In our scholarship, scientific inquiry, and artistry, we create new knowledge and insight, reflecting and shaping the cultures and societies in which human lives unfold.
• In our service to Iowans, we collaborate with communities to solve critical problems arising from inequity.

DEI values are inseparable from those of the liberal arts tradition. To fully realize our college’s critical mission of advancing human understanding within that tradition, we must actualize these values in every aspect of our decision-making and every area of our academic community.