2024 Election

• Terry Janzen

  • Professor of Linguistics, University of Manitoba, Canada

  • email address: terry.janzen@umanitoba.ca 

  • Personal statement: I am a cognitive linguist with interests in multimodal viewpoint, ASL discourse structure, grammaticalization, intersubjectivity in interpreted discourse, and conceptual alignment between interpreters and the speakers and signers they are interpreting.

I am excited to see the formation of CLANA, and would be honoured to be a part of the first full Executive Committee that takes the organization forward. I am a current board member of ICLA, have served on the boards of several other organizations, and CLANAC1 is the third conference I have chaired. I hope that CLANA will affiliate with ICLA, and will gain a significant presence in North America.

• Laura Hirrel

  • Assistant Professor, California State University, Northridge

  • email address: laura.hirrel@csun.edu 

  • website: https://academics.csun.edu/faculty/laura.hirrel 

  • Personal statement: Establishing a professional organization for cognitive linguistics in North America has been a long-standing aspiration of mine. I was a member of the working group that convened in 2023 and early 2024 to establish CLANA and I assisted in organizing the inaugural conference, serving as Co-organizer for the Call for Papers. It is my hope that CLANA will foster the growth of cognitive-functional linguistic research and program offerings across North America. As Vice President, I would actively contribute to these efforts, focusing on outreach to promote the organization and exploring strategies to increase diversity in the perspectives represented within our field.

• Chongwon Park

  • Professor of Linguistics, University of Minnesota Duluth

  • email address: cpark2@d.umn.edu

  • website: https://www.d.umn.edu/~cpark2/

  • Personal statement: I am Professor of Linguistics at the University of Minnesota Duluth. Upon completing my PhD with emphasis on formal syntax and computational linguistics, I discovered that there is a completely new world known as cognitive linguistics; I immediately fell in love with it. Over the past two decades, many colleagues have helped me understand the cognitive linguistics enterprise and transition to this new-to-me framework. It is now time to return the favor to the cognitive linguistics community. As the VP of CLANA, I will develop a channel of dialogue not only among cognitive linguists but also across disciplinary boundaries.

• Daz Saunders

  • Associate Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Manitoba

  • email address: daz.saunders@umanitoba.ca 

  • website: www.dazsaunders.ca 

  • Personal statement: Having researched perspectivized gestures in signed and spoken languages within cognitive linguistics, I am currently examining their application in English/ASL interpretations by Deaf and non-deaf interpreters as part of my post-doc at the University of Manitoba. I am eager to join the CLANA executive committee due to my enthusiasm for cognitive linguistics. Having been involved in the organization and execution of CLANAC1, I wish to continue its momentum. I believe CLANA can effectively represent and promote the work of cognitive linguists and students in North America, encouraging both regional and international exchange. CLANA should inspire current and new cognitive linguists on a global scale.

• Daz Saunders

  • Associate Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Manitoba

  • email address: daz.saunders@umanitoba.ca 

  • website: www.dazsaunders.ca 

  • Personal statement: Having researched perspectivized gestures in signed and spoken languages within cognitive linguistics, I am currently examining their application in English/ASL interpretations by Deaf and non-deaf interpreters as part of my post-doc at the University of Manitoba. I am eager to join the CLANA executive committee due to my enthusiasm for cognitive linguistics. Having been involved in the organization and execution of CLANAC1, I wish to continue its momentum. I believe CLANA can effectively represent and promote the work of cognitive linguists and students in North America, encouraging both regional and international exchange. CLANA should inspire current and new cognitive linguists on a global scale.

• Elise Stickles

  • Assistant Professor, Department of English Language and Literatures, University of British Columbia, Canada

  • email address: elise.stickles@ubc.ca

  • website: www.elisestickles.com 

  • Personal statement: I study how metaphors shape sociopolitical issues, from COVID-19 to climate change. Increasingly I've focused on linguistics’ “PR problem”: despite being language experts, we're largely absent from popular discourse. Thus I’ve also published on linguistics in the media, and am organizing a climate change communications conference. 

The establishment of CLANA is critical, both for cognitive linguistics, and as an organization anyone can turn to for language-related information. As interim Membership Officer and Treasurer, I’ve made our website, mailing list, and social media. I'd like to establish: a resources clearinghouse (e.g. databases, stimuli, protocols); a network connecting students with mentors within and beyond academia; and a media contacts list.

• Pierre Marie Ntang

  • Tuteur et chargé d'encadrement, Université Teluq 

  • email address: pierremarie.ntang@gmail.com  

  • Personal statement: I'm a PhD in cognitive computing. I'm a member of ISC (institut des sciences cognitives). Vice Chair of IEEE education society, Montreal chapter, I'm also a webmaster of IEEE Canadian foundation, and I think I can bring my experience to CLANA.

• Corrine Occhino

  • Assistant Professor, Dept of Linguistics, University of Texas at Austin

  • email address: Occhino@austin.utexas.edu 

  • Personal statement: I'm excited about the formation of CLANA and the continued representation of Cognitive Linguistics in a North American context. I'm happy to be able to support the new organization in the years to come.

• Elise Stickles

  • Assistant Professor, Department of English Language and Literatures, University of British Columbia, Canada

  • email address: elise.stickles@ubc.ca

  • website: www.elisestickles.com 

  • Personal statement: I study how metaphors shape sociopolitical issues, from COVID-19 to climate change. Increasingly I've focused on linguistics’ “PR problem”: despite being language experts, we're largely absent from popular discourse. Thus I’ve also published on linguistics in the media, and am organizing a climate change communications conference. 

The establishment of CLANA is critical, both for cognitive linguistics, and as an organization anyone can turn to for language-related information. As interim Membership Officer and Treasurer, I’ve made our website, mailing list, and social media. I'd like to establish: a resources clearinghouse (e.g. databases, stimuli, protocols); a network connecting students with mentors within and beyond academia; and a media contacts list.

• Marcelo Viridiano

  • Postdoctoral Researcher, Department of Cognitive Science at Case Western Reserve University (starting in September 2024)

  • email address: marcelo.viridiano@case.edu

  • website: www.viridiano.com

  • Personal statement: I have been the Content Production Manager for the Cognitive Science Society since 2021, overseeing the Society's blog, newsletter, and social media. With a B.A. in Graphic Design, I have extensive experience in creating visual identities for academic conferences, as well as serving as a Web Designer for research associations such as Global FrameNet. In September, I will be relocating to Cleveland to work as a postdoctoral researcher in Cognitive Linguistics at the Cognitive Science Department of Case Western Reserve University. I believe that my specific set of skills and work experience make me a great fit for this position.

• Kamal Abou Mikhael

  • PhD Candidate, University of British Columbia

  • email address: kamalabm@student.ubc.ca 

  • Personal statement: Before embarking on my doctoral studies I spent ten years in an administrative capacity of service to graduate students. Having earned two prior graduate degrees as a first-generation student, each in contrasting circumstances -- as a single person vs. having a family, as a full-time graduate student vs. as a working student, in a foreign country vs. in my home country --, I am familiar with various challenges of graduate student experience.

Moreover, my servant-leadership orientation and priority for people, especially students, positions me to combine compassion with practical experience in mobilizing a student-structured agenda that meets their needs.

• Shervin Nosrati

  • PhD Student, Cognitive and Information Sciences, University of California Merced

  • email address: nosrati.shervin@gmail.com 

  • Personal statement: I am a PhD student at the University of California, Merced in the Cognitive and Information Sciences Department. My research interests include metaphor, gesture, and embodied cognition. I explore how language, bodies, and culture influence abstract conceptualization and understanding.

I am standing for election to the Cognitive Linguistics Association of North America Executive Committee for the role of Student Representative to advocate for student needs and perspectives. My goal is to create a supportive environment for student researchers, facilitating collaboration and ensuring that our voices are heard in shaping the future of cognitive linguistics.