Elisa Gomez is currently pursuing an Ed.M. degree in Specialized Studies at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Specifically, she has been designing her own curriculum on ethnic and racial identity development of Latinx youth. Elisa graduated from Scripps College in 2016 with a B.A. in Chicanx/Latinx Studies with a concentration in Mexican History. Her honors thesis, titled Deconstructing Mexicanidad: How mestizaje Excludes Morenos and Indigenas, challenged the dominant Mexican narrative of racial democracy that greatly contributes to the disparity, invisibility, and delegitimization of Afro-descended and Indigenous communities who have been consistently affected by racism. Her research interests include the association between ethnic and racial identity formation and academic achievement. In particular, Elisa aims to identify social structures that convey messages of unworthiness and neglect, and to examine how those negative messages manifest in Latinx youths’ identities, and in turn, influence their academic success. Elisa works as a graduate research assistant for multiple projects.
