Category: Student Activities and Events

On Thursday, April 14, the Language and International Health Society is hosting an online event focused on helping undergraduate students gain the proper strategies for publishing their work.

The event will feature a talk by Dr. Jill D. McLeigh, Director of Policy, Advocacy, and Research at the Rees-Jones Center for Foster Care Excellence at Children’s Health in Dallas, Texas.

What: Writing for Publication

When: Thursday, April 14, 4:30 PM

Where: online (Zoom)

For more information and the Zoom link, please see the event flyer below.

LIH Society- Writing for Publication flyer

Although COVID is still making in-person visits to area high school German programs difficult, schools are accepting visits via Zoom. While it is difficult to meet with former students who now live miles away or who may still be avoiding crowded events due to COVID, technology is helping us to stay connected.

This year, the German program has visited 10 different high schools in the state and in Charlotte, NC, bringing along alumni and current students to participate in the conversations.

The result has been well-received by high school teachers and students who like hearing the personal accounts of our German students both at college and in the workforce.  They are especially impressed when they see that their visitors are in Europe.

Among German program alumni, there are many who desire to keep in touch with their alma mater and who also want to continue to practice their German. For these reasons, the German program began the German alumni Stammtisch (conversation table) this past fall and held its first conversation on 10 November. Stammtisch has given students and alumni a chance to connect with friends in the business community and with recent and not so recent grads.

Dr. Arelis Moore organized a lecture by Rut E. Rivera and Antonia Camacho, PASOs Greenville (November 19, 2019)
Rut E. Rivera, Manager, Greenville PASOs Program, Prisma Health | Accountable Communities, and Antonia Camacho, Community Health Worker, PASOs Greenville, were invited by Dr. Arelis Moore to her SPAN 4190 class (Health and the Hispanic Community) to discuss healthy children, knowledgeable families, and strong communities. PASOs’ Community Health Workers (CHW) trainings cover a wide range of pertinent information regarding Latino experiences and cultures, resources available to families, outreach techniques, and immigrant rights. By providing a platform for oftentimes unheard voices, this initiative actively engages the strengths of Latino community leaders for contributing to a statewide overall well-being. PASOs works with agencies, organizations and coalitions to make sure that they are serving Latino patients and clients effectively. As advocates for their communities, PASOs brings forward the perspective of Latino families and brings ideas for change to decision-makers. PASOs helps build a stronger South Carolina by supporting Latino communities with education, advocacy, and leadership development. For more information, please visit: https://www.scpasos.org/

Dr. Arelis Moore with her students, Rut Rivera, and Antonia Camacho

La hora de la tarea 1
Are you having difficulties with your online homework? An instructor is here to assist you.
Prof. José Luis Ortiz, M.A.
Lecturer of Spanish (jlortiz@clemson.edu)

Prof. Ortiz with his students (SPAN 2020, fall 2019)

La hora de la tarea 2
Are you having difficulties with your online homework? An instructor is here to assist you.
Prof. Nora Logue, M.A.
Lecturer of Spanish (nlogue@clemson.edu)

Prof. Logue with her students (SPAN 2020, fall 2019)

La mesa española
Practice speaking with other students and improve your oral abilities in the target language (for students at the 2000 levels and above).
Prof. Zenia Cruz, M.A.
Lecturer of Spanish (zcruzva@clemson.edu)

Prof. Cruz with her students (SPAN 1020, fall 2019)

El club de español
Come and practice your Spanish while learning about Hispanic culture in an informal setting.
Prof. Yezid Flores, M.Ed.
Lecturer of Spanish (yflores@g.clemson.edu)

Prof. Flores with her students (SPAN 2020, fall 2019)

El mesón de lectura
Improve your reading comprehension skills.
Prof. Mercedes Tejera,  M.A.
Lecturer of Spanish (mtejera@clemson.edu)

Prof. Tejera with her students (SPAN 2010, fall 2019)

La mesa española 2
Practice speaking with other students and improve your oral abilities in the target language (for students at the 1000 levels).
Prof. Debra Williamson, M.A.
Lecturer of Spanish (debra4@clemson.edu)

Prof. Williamson with her students (SPAN 2010, fall 2019)

Hispanic Film Series
Join us to watch films that feature a diverse range of topics highlighting the history, culture and contributions of the Hispanic community around the world.
Prof. Ellory Schmucker, M.A.
Senior Lecturer of Spanish (eschmuc@g.clemson.edu)

 Prof. Schmucker with her students (SPAN 2010, fall 2019)

Hispanic Honor Society
Founded at the University of California, Berkeley in 1919, Sigma Delta Pi, the National Collegiate Hispanic Honor Society, is a non-profit organization incorporated in the State of South Carolina. Bestowal of membership in Sigma Delta Pi is an excellent way to reward outstanding students of Spanish in colleges and universities.
Prof. Rosa Pillcurima, M.A.
Lecturer of Spanish (rpillcu@clemson.edu)

Prof. Pillcurima with her students (SPAN 1010, fall 2019)

Poetry Declamation
Students from South Carolina and neighboring states come to Clemson University campus to show their linguistic abilities by competing in the annual poetry declamation contest. The contest is open to students regularly enrolled in middle and high school language courses. Contest competitions are offered in American Sign Language, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Latin, Russian, and Spanish. Students in Spanish classes recite poems by renowned Hispanic poets such as Alberti, Bécquer, Borges, Darío, Lorca, Machado, Martí, and Vallejo.
Prof. Melva Persico, Ph.D.
Senior Lecturer of Spanish (mpersic@clemson.edu)

Prof. Persico with her students (SPAN 3020, fall 2019)

The Department of Languages and Language and International Health (LIH) is excited to present the 2021 Language and International Health Symposium on Thursday, October 21st.

The symposium will address the ACEs impact on the health and development of children in Latinx communities and strategies to prevent negative outcomes.Guest speakers will include LIH senior Natalie Claypool, ACE master trainer Dana Powell, and Rebecca Planchard, Senior Early Childhood Policy Advisor for the NC Department of Health and Human Services.

Where: Hendrix Center: Almeda Jacks Ballroom A

When: Thursday October 21st. 4-6 PM

Refreshments will be served.

For additional information, please see the flyer for the event below:

The Language and International Business program (LAIB) will host a panel discussion this Wednesday, March 8, at 3:00 pm via Zoom. This panel discussion, which will feature alumni of the Language and International Business program, is open to all Clemson students. Registration is still open!

The panelists will share their experiences, including how they used their language skills to launch their careers. There will be ample time to ask questions and get lots of ideas and advice you can use as you start making your own career plans. This event is open to all Clemson students, but it will be especially relevant to LAIB students, Modern Languages majors, students in language classes, and any student who is interested in pursuing a career with an international component.

Please note that you must be registered to attend.

What:   Graduates from Clemson’s Language and International Business Program talk about their careers and offer advice to current students

When: Wednesday, March 10th 3-4:30pm

Where: on Zoom

Registration link:

https://clemson.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJYodeuopzotGtNWatIY8H9QFRDKj0Qew1pM

For more information on the panelists and registration, please visit the Department of Languages information page.

With Spring Semester 2021 underway and the Clemson community adapting to challenges in innovative and impressive ways, it is interesting to look back and reflect on some of the ways the Department of Languages students, faculty and alumni have been navigating these unusual times. Fall Semester 2020 brought with it many unique experiences and ways to stay engaged and make connections. In our “Fall 2020 Reflections” posts, we are excited to take a look at specific events, opportunities and accomplishments that we saw last semester and which set the stage for even more exciting opportunities this Spring and beyond.

NOVEMBER, 2020

On November 25, the Language and International Health (L&IH) Society sponsored “La Canasta Básica: Culturally relevant healthy food options for Latinx communities in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic”.

Rut Rivera, a manager of the health promotion organization, PASOs in Greenville, SC, presented her experience with program development and community relations within the unique context of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the webinar, Rivera discussed a new initiative set forth by a collaboration between the Hispanic Alliance and PASOs of Greenville, Canasta Básica, which seeks to provide culturally appropriate food to the local hispanic community suffering from food scarcity as a result of the pandemic. The coalition boasts having connected 2,879 community members with resources during these challenging times.

Her presentation gave students the opportunity to volunteer in the program’s future events and connect with other project managers from PASOs and the Hispanic Alliance. Students were also encouraged to inquire about life in the field of community development. Rivera’s passion for community outreach was obvious and inspiring to all those who attended.

French:

The French Professional Society (FPS) is a pre-professional society for students with a strong interest and background in French and/or French-American relations that wish to apply these interests to their career. FPS meets monthly as a club as well as informally with individual members who want to learn more about the opportunities available to French L&IT/L&IH majors. Meetings throughout the semester focus on professional development and aim to introduce and inform members about study abroad, internships, and career paths.

The Spring 2019 semester began with a joint meeting with the Clemson French Club where students learned from the editor of the on-campus international affairs magazine, The Pendulum, about the opportunity to write an article of an international affairs topic of their choosing, experience the research and editing process, and become published in a magazine. As part of the Language and International Trade Council, FPS helped to plan and develop the 2019 Language and International Business Conference. The society also strengthened its relationship with the French-American Chamber of Commerce of the Carolinas (FACCC) and partnered with them for a networking night in Greer and attended FACCC networking nights in Columbia. At these events, FPS members connected with French Language and International Trade alumni and American and French business associates in the upstate region.

The incoming 2019-2020 FPS President is Mary Veideman. More information is available on the FPS Facebook page.

Spanish:

The Iota Phi Chapter of Sigma Delta Pi, the National Collegiate Hispanic Honor Society, hosted its annual induction ceremony on March 2nd in The Brown Room of Cooper Library. Six new members were inducted. During the ceremony, Angelica Werth gave a presentation about her experience studying abroad in Córdoba, Argentina. The event was organized by chapter sponsor Rosa Pillcurima, lecturer of Spanish.

The Department of Languages hosted the annual Language and International Business Conference (formerly the Language and International Trade Conference) on March 13 in the Hendrix Student Center. The conference provides leadership opportunities to students of foreign languages, promotes awareness of international businesses in Upstate South Carolina, and gives students networking and job opportunities. The theme of this year’s event was “applying language in the global marketplace.” The 2019 conference included a keynote speech by Justin Prescott, a Clemson alumnus and Senior Consultant at Ernst and Young in Tokyo; a panel discussion with Chamber of Commerce members; and a roundtable discussion with Clemson students and international business leaders.

On November 7, Arelis Moore de Peralta, assistant professor of Spanish and Health, was the invited speaker at the annual ceremony of the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society at the Madren Center. She was also inducted into the society as a faculty member by Provost Bob Jones.

“It was an absolute honor for me to be there, particularly because I was suggested as a main speaker by one of my [Language and International Health] students, who is a leader in the society,” Arelis said.

Congratulations!