The understanding of a language includes the understanding of the cultures and peoples who speak it. We aim at educating students to become more effective participants in the global community of the twenty-first century by promoting awareness and sensitivity to Spanish language and Hispanic cultures. The leaders of the Hispanic Studies program know how to leverage opportunities with innovative thinking and creativity.

Courses in the  Program improve students’ facility in dealing with a number of disciplinary and interdisciplinary challenges.

Students will:

• master the elements of Greek and Latin grammar;
• read and comprehend Greek and Latin texts in their original languages;
• use their knowledge of Greek and Latin to aid their study in other programs in the liberal arts, understand the historical foundations and interrelations of those studies, and bring them together into shared projects;.
• discern a diverse range of value systems and complex points of view by familiarizing themselves with the idiosyncratic and seminal institutions of the Greeks and the syncretic culture of the Romans;
• examine more closely Greek, Roman, and Early Christian traditions and understand how each tradition shaped the views and actions of the major figures in them; and
• construct a critical and charitable approach to each of those traditions and gain a far-reaching perspective on the ways those cultures developed over time, grew, declined, clashed with each other, and adapted to the world around them.

Students who participate in our program’s intentional service-learning opportunities abroad are well-positioned to explore careers in non-profit organizations around the world.

Our program expects students to develop their proficiency in the language by focusing on the four skills of reading, writing, listening, and speaking. Content area courses serve the purpose of improving upon skills, broadening cultural knowledge, and gaining a deeper understanding of history, politics, art, and geography.

The program fulfills its mission by teaching the language, cultures, and literatures associated with Spanish, by promoting cross-cultural awareness and understanding, and by presenting models of effective pedagogy. It also does so by encouraging students to participate in the various study-abroad programs, such as the ones in Oaxaca (México), León (Spain), Granada (Spain), and Ecuador.