Teresita Levy

Teresita A. Levy is an Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Latin American and Latino Studies at Lehman College. She is a trained historian and quantitative researcher, and her courses deal with the history of Latin America, the Caribbean, and their diasporas. Her research focuses on the economic history of the Spanish Caribbean. Professor Levy’s book, Puerto Ricans in the Empire: Tobacco Growers and U.S. Colonialism, was published by Rutgers University Press in 2014. In this book, Professor Levy argues that Puerto Ricans demanded and won inclusion in the U.S. empire, in terms that were defined not only by the colonial power, but also by the colonized. Her current research project deals with the state of the tobacco industry in Puerto Rico today and she has been traveling and meeting with farmers, producers, and cigar shop owners for the last year.

Professor Levy is also a qualitative researcher, moderating groups and conducting in-depth interviews throughout the United States in English and Spanish for over 20 years. She has worked with government agencies such as the NYC Office of Emergency Management, the NYC Department of Health, the NYC Mayor's Office, the NYC Board of Education, Camden Board of Education, and the City of Chicago Office of the Mayor. Her clients have included non-for-profit organizations, such as Planned Parenthood, Share Our Strength, the Ford Foundation, and The Gates Foundation, as well as for-profit corporations, such as Google, Facebook, McDonald's and Citibank. Her expertise lies in moderating groups that deal with issues of diversity, equity and inclusion, and personally sensitive issues, such as sexuality, health concerns, education policy, or caring for elderly relatives or children with disabilities.

Professor Levy has a Ph.D. and M.Phil. in History from The Graduate Center of the City University of New York and a M.S. in Counseling from Long Island University, C.W. Post Campus. Her B.A. in Latin American and Caribbean Studies is from Rollins College.