Students at the University of the Southern Caribbean (USC) desirous of learning Spanish as a Foreign Language or forming mutually beneficial connections with individuals from Spanish speaking countries have the opportunity to do so thanks to a Virtual Room created by Nancy Esther Ruiz Gallego a lecturer in the School of Education and the Language Center at the Colombia Adventist University (UNAC).
Ms. Gallego, who developed the Virtual Room as a thesis project for the completion of her master’s degree program is intent on growing the number of connections made through the Virtual Room and has invited students of USC who want to meet a penpal or Spanish friend who can help him/her learn the language to join this Virtual Room.
She made mention of her success stories, one of them a Colombian student who is currently spending time on the island of Dominica with a friend who she made through the virtual room. The time in Dominica is allowing her the opportunity to experience the culture and hear people speak English on a daily basis.
Speaking to Ms Gallego at USC where she spent one month participating in an Immersion program coordinated by USC’s International Center for Corporate Training and Languages, she stated that her visit to this English Speaking Caribbean University was the missing link to her English education and experience. “You have to understand and experience the culture,” she said.
Gallego’s visit was made as part of an agreement between the Caribbean Union Conference of SDA and UNAC and a portion of the time spent at USC included beginning talks with the administration to form a new agreement between UNAC and USC, the two tertiary institutions.
This new agreement will yield tremendous benefit to the two Universities and their students as is now evidenced by the Virtual Room that has been opened up to students of USC.
The benefits of learning a second language are numerous, one of them being the creation of more opportunities for career advancement and the fact that it improves one’s marketability in the job arena.
Olandy Naranjo, Dean of Faculty Administration and Coordinator of Research in Business Communication and Social Entrepreneurship at UNAC was also part of the immersion program at USC. Naranjo describes her overall experience as impactful citing the biblical passages found along the walls of the School of Business as relevant and important as it gave persons an opportunity to link scripture with business. This to her signified the immersion of faith and learning.
Dr Stephen Pilgrim, Consultant Director of the International Center for Corporate Training and Languages (left) and Dr Hilary Bowman, University President.
USC will continue to widen its reach to Latin America and the French territories within its reach by formulating programmes to meet the language needs of students and professionals alike. The International Center for Corporate Training and Languages, formally the Language Center is headed by Dr Stephen Pilgrim who serves as Consultant Director of the Center.
Individuals desirous of joining the Virtual Room and meeting individuals who can help them learn Spanish can contact Ms Nancy Gallego via email – nruiz@unac.edu.co or through WhatsApp – 1(868) 392-5209.
