好色先生

Cesar Ovando is a Ph.D. student in History at The Pennsylvania State University. He earned his M.A. in Latin American Studies from the University of California, Los Angeles, and his B.A. in History, with minors in Anthropology and Indigenous Peoples of the Americas, from 好色先生, Dominguez Hills.

Cesar specializes in Colonial Latin American History, focusing on the sociopolitical and cultural dynamics of Indigenous communities鈥擭ahuatl, K鈥檌che鈥�, and Kaqchikel in Highland Guatemala鈥攄uring the Spanish invasion. His research challenges traditional triumphalist narratives of the 鈥渃onquest鈥� by centering Indigenous agency, resilience, and historical memory. Drawing on his Guatemalan identity and Indigenous heritage, he engages deeply with Indigenous sources to contribute to the field of New Conquest History.

Cesar credits much of his academic foundation to the History Department at CSUDH. As an undergraduate, he earned a spot for the third cohort of the CSU Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship, a prestigious program to increase diversity in humanities faculty. He also earned a place in CSUDH鈥檚 Sally Casanova Predoctoral Program. His commitment to research and scholarship led him to participate in UC Berkeley鈥檚 inaugural History Ph.D. Pipeline Program, UC Santa Barbara鈥檚 Academic Research Consortium, and Penn State鈥檚 Catto-LeCount Fellows Program.

Cesar received the Sandra Mabritto Memorial Fellowship at UCLA to fund his M.A. studies. He earned two Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowships鈥攐ne for summer and another for the academic year鈥攖o support his language training in K鈥檌che鈥� in Guatemala and Nahuatl at UCLA. Upon admission to Penn State, he achieved the Bunton-Waller Award, a five-year funding package to support his doctoral studies.

Cesar is currently co-mentored by Dr. Matthew Restall, author of听Seven Myths of the Spanish Conquest听(2021) and When Montezuma Met Cort茅s (2018), and Dr. Martha Few, author of听For All of Humanity听(2015) and听Women Who Live Evil Lives听(2002). His academic journey traces back to the Department Seminar Series at CSUDH (HIS 300, 400, and 490), where he first encountered the fields of New Conquest History and New Philology.

Reflecting on his path, Cesar remarks, 鈥淚t鈥檚 crazy to think that my journey started when I walked into class (HIS300 and 400) and read听Seven Myths of the Spanish Conquest听and听Women Who Live Evil Lives鈥攁nd now the very same authors are my co-advisers, and I am now a part of a significant academic genealogy! I never imagined this, and I鈥檓 incredibly grateful to my DH community for building, developing, and refining the foundation that led me here.鈥�