REFLEXIONES PEDAGO ´ GICAS Central American studies at CSUN Douglas Carranza 1 • Beatriz Cortez 1 Ó Macmillan Publishers Ltd 2017 Central American studies is an emerging discipline. 1 It is an interdisciplinary academic space that emphasizes the transnational character of Central American communities in the diaspora. Central American studies was established in August 2000 at California State University (CSUN), Northridge, and the department continues to be the only one of its kind in the United States. The courses that fall under the category of Central American studies offer a variety of perspectives and approaches, including the study of politics, gender, art, culture, identity, and literature, with the diverse issues and worldviews relevant to the Central American peoples. Central American studies at CSUN is valuable for students seeking to understand their own heritage, as well as for those who plan to work with the ever-growing Central American community in the United States, or those who have a scholarly interest in understanding the character of this active and expanding transnational community. The program emphasizes the importance of learning through work in the community. At the same time, its aim is to achieve academic excellence. We are happy to report that, as of now, more than 7% of our alumni have moved on to graduate school, where they continue to explore this area of study and to multiply the work that we do. & Beatriz Cortez beatriz.cortez@csun.edu Douglas Carranza douglas.carranza@csun.edu 1 California State University, Northridge, USA 1 From Introduction to Central American Studies, 2nd ed., Beatriz Cortez and Douglas Carranza Mena, eds. Copyright Ó 2015 by Beatriz Cortez and Douglas Carranza Mena. Reprinted by permission of Kendall Hunt Publishing Company. Lat Stud (2017) 15:109–111 DOI 10.1057/s41276-017-0054-2