Iara Mantenuto

Dr. Iara Mantenuto is an Assistant Professor in the English Department at California State University, Dominguez Hills, within the College of Arts and Humanities. She holds a Ph.D. in Linguistics from UCLA and is a first-generation scholar. Her affiliations include current academic appointments at CSUDH and previous recognition as a Mellon Teaching Fellow at UCLA.

Her research specializes in theoretical and documentary linguistics, with emphasis on:

• Morphosyntactic theory and crosslinguistic variation
• Pedagogical techniques for linguistics/language education
• Documentation of endangered languages (Upper Southern Italian and Mixtec)
• Analysis of grammatical features including demonstratives, quantifiers, and relative clauses

Publications focus on syntax and semantics in understudied languages, with recent work examining Teramano relative clauses (2020) and Kenyah quantifiers (2017). Her research consistently addresses both theoretical frameworks and community-centered language preservation.

Award highlights:

• Distinguished Teaching Award (UCLA Linguistics)
• Mellon Teaching Fellowship for Inclusive Pedagogy
• Syracuse University Teaching Certification

She teaches undergraduate syntax courses and graduate seminars in TESL/linguistics, with special attention to heritage language pedagogy. Actively involved in Mixtec language revitalization efforts, she develops practical teaching methodologies for indigenous languages.