The language department hosted a welcome back event at the Language Center in Swan Hall on Wednesday, Sept. 27 from 4-5pm.
Students who attended received passports which they could have stamped at any of the six language tables dispersed through the room. If students collected four stamps from four different countries, they received a prize from the department.
French, Spanish, German, Italian, Chinese, Japanese and the classical languages were all present at the event, and each table had activities and cultural foods to engage students.
Some of the activities included making an Eiffel tower at the French table, learning how to introduce yourself in Spanish, making Chinese lanterns, learning to write Chinese characters and learning Italian gestures.
Associate Professor of French and Film and Associate Chair of the Department of Modern Classical Language and Literatures Leslie Kealhofer-Kemp was one of the organizers of the event.
“We wanted to celebrate the start of the semester and do something all together,” Kealhofer-Kemp said. “All of the faculty really contributed their time and expertise in order to do something fun for the students.”
According to Kealhofer-Kemp, a major goal of the language department is to find ways to engage students in activities outside of the classroom and help students create a community of others who are also learning a new language.
The language department achieved their goal with the event, as there were so many students present, a line formed out the door of students waiting to get inside the language center.
Once inside, the room was filled with energy as students engaged in conversations in English as well as the languages they are learning. Students were also able to talk with faculty from the language department, and many questions were asked to professors of how to say certain words or phrases in the language they teach.
“I’m really excited about the turnout,” Kealhofer-Kemp said. “It’s very exciting to see so many students and to meet so many students taking different languages.”
First-year public relations and sports media major Bridgette Keating attended the event.
She is currently enrolled in Spanish Language and Style I (SPA 205).
“I’m really glad that I came,” Keating said. “I took Spanish all four years of high school, and I really enjoyed it. I wanted to continue taking it in college to continue getting better at it.”
Patricia China, a triple major in international relations and diplomacy, Spanish and Japanese also attended the event.
“My professors encouraged us to come and meet new people,” China said. “I think the event has been very informative, especially the table teaching about Italian gestures.”
The language department has many more activities planned for the upcoming semester.
It is currently Hispanic Heritage month, and the Spanish department has been celebrating with special events.
The AGONZA & Pablo Youngs: Crossroads/ Encrucijadas Art Exhibition will be on display until Oct. 15. The Hispanic LatinX Film Series will also be continuing until Oct.12, with their next film “Un Cuento Chino (Chinese Takeaway)” being presented Friday Oct. 5.