Paul Mandell

Paul Mandell is a Professor and Coordinator of the Spanish Program at the University of Houston Downtown (UHD), within the Department of History, Humanities & Languages. He holds a Ph.D. in Spanish Applied Linguistics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and has been a professional educator since 1981. He joined UHD in 2010 as an Assistant Professor, was promoted to Associate Professor in 2016, and became a full Professor in 2025.

Education:

• Ph.D. in Spanish Applied Linguistics, University of Illinois (1996)
• MA in Hispanic Literature, Emory University (1988)
• BAs in Latin American Cultural Anthropology and Spanish, Emory University (1981)

Research Interests: Focus on Universal Grammar in adult L2 acquisition, verb movement, morphological processing in Spanish learners, and pedagogical innovations in language teaching. Recent work explores online language instruction and vision’s role in SLA. He regularly presents at conferences like AATSP and AAAL.

Teaching: Coordinates UHD’s Spanish Program, designing elementary and intermediate courses. Teaches SPAN 1401–2302, SPAN 3360 (Grammar), SPAN 4310 (Linguistics), and SPAN 4365 (Teaching Spanish). Emphasizes task-based instruction and classroom innovation.

Grants & Service:

• Recipient of multiple grants (e.g., ORC Grant for FNP/VM research)
• University Senate member, Academic Technology Committee, and service on search committees
• Community service roles: Treasurer of AFCI, Board Member of Mission Trips

Labs/Teams: No formal lab mentioned, but collaborates with peers on pedagogical projects and grant-funded initiatives.