Catalina Cayetano, PhD

Faculty Fellow

Bio

Dr. Catalina Cayetano is a scholar-practitioner in Intercultural Communication whose teaching, research, and leadership are shaped by her lived experience as a Latina first-generation college student. Her work focuses on building culturally responsive learning environments, fostering intercultural dialogue, and advancing community-based engagement across academic and public spheres. As Director of Learning Enterprise and Community Engagement for ASU’s New College, Dr. Cayetano develops strategic partnerships that embed community knowledge into academic pathways. Her work aligns with ASU’s Charter—measuring success by whom we include and how they succeed—and supports New College’s mission to empower communities through interdisciplinary collaboration.

Dr. Cayetano’s research examines language, cultural, and technology brokering within immigrant families, with particular attention to how youth navigate multiple cultural systems to support their families. Her work explores how these everyday communication practices shape identity, resilience, and advocacy in multilingual, transnational households. Dr. Cayetano serves as President of the Faculty Women of Color Caucus (FWOCC), Executive Member of the Committee of Campus Inclusiveness (CCI), and Co-chair of the Westmarc Healthcare Committee in the West Valley. She also contributes to the ASU community as Honors Faculty and as Director of Research Initiatives and Intercultural Engagement at CommLabASU