NASHVILLE (AP) - Vanderbilt University has received a $1.8 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education to expand collaborations in research, teaching and public engagement in Tennessee and around the world.

The four-year grant renews the center's designation as a comprehensive National Resource Center.

The "One Vanderbilt in Latin America" model integrates teaching, research and public engagement, with a focus on particular places and themes.

Founded in 1947 as the nation's first Institute of Brazilian Studies, the Center for Latin American Studies has a long history of engagement with the region.

Vanderbilt has a remarkable concentration of Latin Americanists, with particular strengths in Brazil, Central America, the Andes, and the Black Atlantic.