As of September 2025, Godfrey will begin teaching courses in Latin American history at UFV. She spoke with The Cascade about her teaching style, her passion for travelling, and what she hopes to bring to UFV.
Originally from Jacksonville, Florida, Godfrey eventually moved to Pennsylvania and received her doctorate from Penn State University (PSU) in 2022. When asked what prompted her decision to leave the United States and work in Canada, Godfrey explained that she was drawn to UFV’s more intimate class sizes and the idea of a new experience.
“I looked up the university [and] I was immediately attracted to the smaller size of it … It was this triple whammy of [a] new adventure, an institution that seemed really appealing to me in terms of its mission, and then [it being the] West Coast. I’ve never had a West Coast experience before.”
An avid traveller, Godfrey has been to several countries including Colombia, Spain, Portugal, Mexico, France, and Germany. Godfrey shared how travelling has not only benefited her academically, but personally as well.
“When I went and did research for the first time in Spain, I got to meet people from all over the world who were just really cool, interesting, and smart.”
Reflecting on what sparked her interest in Latin American history, Godfrey shared that her childhood environment mixed with her drive to learn new languages and see the world all played a part.
“Being from Florida, my earliest memories involve the Spanish language … I’ve been surrounded by Latin American history and cultures for as long as I can remember.”
Godfrey recently travelled to Seville, Spain, to work on an extension of her dissertation entitled, Matrilineal Routes: Indigenous Kinship Networks, Gender, and Mobility in Early Modern Colombia. She shared that the trip allowed her to examine the manuscript through an Imperial lens by exploring how Indigenous cities have paid tribute to the Crown and how Indigenous peoples have adapted to and survived Imperial pressures since Spain’s colonization of Central and South America.
“It allowed me to gain a broader picture of what the historical and political context was for the questions that I’m asking in the book, which is about matrilineal kinship networks.”
According to Godfrey, a common misconception she often encounters about Latin America is the belief that all its countries are the same, explaining that this mindset overlooks the region’s rich cultural, historical, and political diversity.
“There is no one Latin America. There are many Latin Americas … You have to go region by region, country by country, ethnic group by ethnic group, racial group by racial group. It’s overwhelming, the way that I’m describing it, and that’s because it is, but just because it’s overwhelming doesn’t mean it’s not worth studying.”
When asked what students gain from learning about Latin American history, Godfrey emphasized the importance of studying topics such as how many Latin American dictatorships have both gained and lost their power, and how marginalized groups have struggled to achieve human rights. Additionally, Godfrey explained that students can learn much from Latin America’s unique environmental history.
“It can be a blueprint for dealing with environmental disasters happening in Canada or anywhere else in the globe. So it’s looking at questions and problems in a specific place, but knowing that there’s a framework for how you can apply it to other regions.”
Regarding what students can expect when they walk into Godfrey’s classroom, she described her teaching style as quite informal, aiming to turn what might otherwise feel dull or tedious into something engaging.
“I want the classes I teach to be informative, to be useful, rigorous but approachable [and] I want students to feel excited to come to class.”
Godfrey is interested in one day introducing a Latin American film course at UFV and taking students on trips to Latin American countries, especially Colombia.
“Colombia is the most familiar to me, but I think [wherever] students’ interests lie, and where the university has an interest in forging more institutional ties, I’m your girl. I’ll do it.”
Students interested in learning more about Latin American history from Godfrey can take HIST/LAS 161: “Aztecs, Mayas, and Spaniards,” HIST/LAS 358: “African Slavery in the Americas,” and HIST/LAS 458: “History of Indigenous Peoples in Latin America” in the upcoming fall semester.
Interviews have been edited for length and clarity.
