Kyle Thomson, Ph.D.

Biography

Dr. Kyle Thomson is an Assistant Professor of Spanish at Queens University of Charlotte, where he teaches courses in Spanish, Italian, and the general education program. His research and teaching interests span comparative literature and cultural studies, with a particular focus on Southern Europe.

Kyle earned his Ph.D. in Romance Languages and Literatures from the University of California, Berkeley, where he also completed a Designated Emphasis in European Studies and a Certificate in Teaching and Learning in Higher Education. His doctoral research examined the construction of space in postcolonial literature in contemporary Spain, Italy, and Portugal.

A Fulbright alum, Kyle conducted research in Portugal on the 1998 Lisbon World Expo through a Fulbright/FLAD Open Study Award. His work has also been supported by two UC Berkeley Institute of European Studies research fellowships (University of Münster and St. Andrews). In recognition of his contributions to Italian Studies, he was awarded the UC Berkeley Giampiccolo Prize for Excellence in 2022.

Kyle is currently working on an article entitled “On a Journey”: Travelling Memory in Lucía Asué Mbomío Rubio’s Hija del camino, which explores themes of migration, memory, and identity in contemporary Spanish literature.

Beyond literature and cultural studies, Kyle’s academic interests include second language acquisition, tourism studies, memory studies, and the evolution of national and collective identities. He has extensive experience teaching Spanish, Italian, and French at various levels and mentoring students across the humanities, including in literature and writing.

Education

Ph.D., Romance Languages and Literatures, University of California, Berkeley
B.A., Romance Language Studies, University of California, Santa Cruz