María Luisa Parra-Velasco
Senior Preceptor in Spanish
Spanish Language Program Director
Director, RLL’s Initiative on the Teaching of Spanish as a Heritage Language
Department of Romance Languages and Literatures, Harvard University
Research Interests: Spanish as a second and as a heritage language; Curriculum Design and Pedagogy; Bilingualism and Identity; (Transnational) Immigration and Education; INtercultural Education in Mexico.
María Luisa Parra-Velasco brings over 20 years of experience in higher education to her role as Senior Preceptor of Spanish at Harvard. Her career has been devoted to creating inclusive, innovative, and culturally rich academic programs that center on the needs of bilingual and bicultural students, especially those navigating multiple languages and identities in the U.S.
At Harvard, María Luisa pioneered the Spanish as a Heritage Language track, which supports Latino students in reclaiming and strengthening their linguistic and cultural heritage through advanced coursework. Her courses integrate advanced Spanish language instruction, with community engagement, fostering both critical linguistic proficiency and cultural identity. She also leads the RLL Department’s initiative on the teaching of Spanish as a heritage language, in partnership with the Observatorio Cervantes.
Her teaching and research lie at the intersection of curriculum design, the humanities, social sciences, bilingual development, and civic engagement. She is particularly passionate about the role of language in shaping identity, community, and belonging. María Luisa’s courses frequently take students beyond the classroom, into collaborative projects with local nonprofits and cultural institutions such as the Harvard Art Museums, offering meaningful, real-world language learning experiences to students.
Her work is grounded in critical pedagogy and informed by her longstanding commitment to equity and social justice. Through the humanities, the arts, and educational technologies, she empowers students to become agents of change—global citizens who are thoughtful, reflective, and engaged.
Dr. Parra has authored the book Enseñanza del español y juventud latina (2021), which explores pedagogical frameworks for teaching Spanish to Latinx youth in the U.S., integrating ecological and dynamic perspectives on bilingual identity.
Her new co-authored book iEnseñar y aprender en la interculturalidad. Orientaciones pedagógicas para construir aulas inclusivas, equitativas y justas provides educators and administrators with decolonial theoretical and pedagogical freameworks to work with cultural and linguistically diverse classrooms.
Awards & Recognition
Petra Shattuck Excellence in Teaching Award, Harvard Extension School (2023)
Favorite Professor, Harvard Class of 2022
Excellence in Language Program Direction, AAUSC (with Dr. Jorge Méndez-Seijas, 2022)
Most Innovative Professor, Babson University (2019)
Harvard College Faculty Spotlight Proyect: https://college.harvard.edu/academics/faculty/maria-luisa-parra-velasco
Researchgate most updated publications: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Maria-Parra-34?ev=hdr_xprf