MOREHEAD Foreign language programs are facing massive cuts across the country, condensing departments that emphasize the arts and humanities. Morehead State University is no different.
Colleges have started putting more focus towards STEM-related majors, and as a result, many students are faced with shrinking programs or the complete removal of their major.
Foreign language programs are the most affected.
“I think it’s a tragedy,” said Dr. Sylvia Henneberg, the interim dean of the Caudill College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences. “The humanities are taking a really big hit at the moment for any number of reasons.”
Morehead State’s foreign language opportunities continue to dwindle, with only French and Spanish courses being offered, while German, Chinese, Latin and Italian are no longer available to students.
“We are moving into the direction of a little bit of French and Spanish,” Henneberg said. “That is all we can sustain and support.”
Henneberg accredits low enrollment, low birth rates and the rise of STEM to the declining programs.
Jessica Oney, a graduate of MSU and high school Spanish and communications teacher at Shelby Valley High School, had original plans of medical school. She found a passion for Spanish that gave her confidence, a confidence she’s determined to pass on to shy students.
“There is just something about language classes that brings kids out of their shells,” said Oney.
“The thing that I pride myself in is pulling kids out of their shells,” she said. “So will they learn a lot of Spanish? Hopefully, but some of them, no, but they all come out stronger communicators and more confident.”
Henneberg advocates for study-abroad opportunities for students, and that they benefit students in their future careers.
“This is why study abroad is all the more important because we’re just being forced to narrow down the language offerings at post-secondary institutions,” she said. “So anything that we can do to compensate for that is, I think, essential.”
Despite the current cuts foreign language is facing, there is a projected 8.5% growth in related fields and more than 63% of people who have a bachelor’s degree in a foreign language are employed.
Colleges in the Appalachian region have started cutting their programs the hardest, West Virginia University in particular.
In early August, the university proposed a plan that would eliminate every foreign language program, and 7% of their faculty, to provide STEM-related fields with more resources.
Bellarmine University, in Louisville, announced in March that they will begin phasing out a number of programs in the next few years, including foreign languages and national studies.
Many of the already existing courses at Morehead are not offered in the spring semester, leaving many students with gaps in their schedules.
Students participating in the Spanish major and minor have struggled with completing their schedules because of the few classes that are being offered.
“I feel it has put a lot of strain on the professors to teach what is needed, and makes it difficult for students to fit classes into their schedule when there are only a few options to take,” said Hannah Albright, a political science major and Spanish minor.
For more information regarding Morehead’s foreign language programs, visit the Caudill College’s page.
For information regarding study abroad, contact Dr. Sylvia Henneberg through Morehead’s website.