Dr. Berta Carrasco
Associate Professor of Spanish
Dr. Berta Carrasco teaches all levels of Spanish, including Spanish for Heritage Speakers and Latinos in Holland, a seminar in which students learn from the community by going into the community and participating in various projects. One of Dr. Carrasco鈥檚 passions as a professor is to connect students with the community that surrounds Hope, either through service learning opportunities, bringing guests to the classroom or visits to businesses and organizations. Dr. Carrasco feels extremely lucky to be able to teach Hope students about her culture and her native language.
She joined the Hope faculty in 2012.
AREAS OF expertise
Dr. Carrasco鈥檚 doctoral studies focused on Spanish women鈥檚 writings, particularly the testimony of women who were in prison during the Spanish Civil War. Related to this topic, she likes to research how the change of generations affects the way women define themselves.
She also conducts research on experiential learning, and more specifically on the benefits and limitations of service learning not only for students but also for the community.
EDUCATION
- Ph.D., Spanish peninsular literature, Western Michigan University, 2011
- M.A., Spanish literature and cultures, Western Michigan University, 2007
- B.A., English philology, Universidad Nebrija, Madrid, 2005
When Dr. Carrasco was in college in Spain, her home country, during her junior year she studied abroad at Kalamazoo College (about an hour south of Hope鈥檚 campus), where she also worked as a Spanish conversation lab instructor.
Selected HONORS, GRANTS & AWARDS
- Alumni Award, Western Michigan University, 2025
- 鈥淔ood Disparities and Food Justice in Greater Holland,鈥 Mellon Foundation Community-Based Project grant, 2020鈥2023
- Faculty Award, 熊猫在线视频 Latino Student Organization, 2020
- 鈥淚mmigration Stories: The Latino Community at Holland Past and Present,鈥 Mellon Grand Challenges faculty鈥搒tudent research grant, 2019
Published work
- 鈥溾楧esde la noche y la niebla鈥 y 鈥楢lias Lola; historia de las 煤ltimas presas pol铆ticas de la c谩rcel de Ventas鈥: dos historias de resistencia colectiva femenina en la c谩rcel franquista de Ventas,鈥 chapter in La identidad en el mundo hispano Igualdades y desigualdades en los siglos XIX, XX y XXI a trav茅s de diversos textos, 2019
- 鈥淧a铆s 脥ntimo: Identity Formation of a Generation that Inherited the Trauma of the Spanish Civil War,鈥 Michigan Academician, Michigan Academy of Science, Arts and Letters, 2018
- 鈥淓l proceso de literaturizaci贸n de los primeros yextos de las c谩rceles femeninas franquistas (1970鈥1980),鈥 Sincron铆a. Revista electr贸nica de Filosof铆a, Letras y Humanidades, 2018
- , Springer, 2015
Dr. Carrasco has also presented at multiple national and international conferences.
Outside Hope
Things that Dr. Carrasco absolutely loves doing in her free time include reading, traveling, spending time with her family and friends, and watching her kids playing soccer any season of the year.

616.395.7957
carrasco@hope.edu