WSU Vancouver

The DFLC in Vancouver is excited about the addition of another multidisciplinary program to the campus—the Global Studies Minor! This program allows students to choose from a wide range of courses in 12 different disciplines, and encourages the development of intermediate language skills. Our Spanish language minor continues to grow, and the Spanish Club recently held a very successful Día de los Muertos celebration. More than 100 students, faculty, staff, and their families learned about the celebration with a short talk and PowerPoint presentation by Spanish Club faculty advisor María Lee-López. Participants viewed a model ofrenda altar designed and decorated by the club, enjoyed delicious food provided by local restaurant La Costa, and even took an informal merengue dance class. We are excited for spring semester, particularly about our film courses, which are in high demand by students and increasingly popular thanks to the Film Studies Minor. Additionally, we will extend to some of our advanced students the opportunity to participate in a professional internship in collaboration with our Free Clinic of Southwest Washington.

WSU Tri-Cities

This fall semester Tri-Cities is offering its first intermediate Spanish 203 course. Interest in the Spanish minor is strong, and 20 students are currently enrolled in Spanish 308.

Students in Spanish 101 and Spanish 203 are writing diamond and shape poems for presentation during the Campus Symposium during final exam week. The two types of poems show student creativity in the language, even from the first semester of Spanish. The student’s writing shows that they have learned a great deal about the subjunctive this semester.

To highlight students’ progress this semester, Spanish 308 students are preparing autobiographies that illustrate the process of developing their writing skills. Works will be displayed during the Campus Symposium which will take place from noon to 1:00 p.m. Tues.- Fri. of finals week. Last semester’s projects on translation were a popular attraction, and the students hope that their projects this semester will demonstrate how important Spanish is in our community and on our campus.

Student engagement is a hallmark of the Tri-Cities campus. Once again, advanced Spanish students are serving as conversation partners for beginning students during oral final exams.