Dr. Linda Halgunseth named interim Director for the Chicano/Latino Studies Program

August 18, 2025

Dr. Linda Citlali Halgunseth, Associate Professor of Human Development and Family Studies (HDFS) has been selected to serve as interim Director for the Chicano/Latino Studies Program beginning August 16, 2025. She replaces Dr. M. Isabel Ayala, who will now have more time to focus on her research and scholarship on Latinx racialization, higher education attainment, and joy.

Isabel served as director of CLS since 2019 leading both the undergraduate and graduate programs and advancing curricular and co-curricular programming that centered student growth. During her tenure as director, she championed the importance of Chicano/Latino Studies (CLS) at Michigan State University during a period of heightened scrutiny toward higher education and ethnic studies curricula, contributing to sustained institutional support and awareness. She has also forged and deepened interdisciplinary partnerships across multiple MSU colleges and departments, strengthening the program’s interdisciplinary foundation and long-term sustainability. Isabel was a consistent and unwavering champion for CLS students and faculty and a dedicated academic leader who modeled kindness and generosity while advancing excellence in research, teaching, and service.

Dr. Halgunseth’s research focuses on culturally sensitive measurement of Latinx parenting, inclusive practices in family engagement, and socio-cultural influences on parenting, parent-child interactions, and child development.  Dr. Halgunseth is Past Chair of the Latinx Caucus of the Society for Research in Child Development (SRCD) and received the Early Career Award in Teaching Excellence from AAUP and the Mid-Career and Early Career Awards in Research from the SRCD Latinx Caucus. Learn more about her in this recent Q and A featured on the CLS website. 
 
"I am confident Dr. Halgunseth will lead this program effectively until a permanent director is identified. Please join me in welcoming Linda to this role and wishing Dr. Ayala all the best," said Dr. Brent Donnellan 
Dean, MSU College of Social Science.