By Laurel McLaughlin ’92

URI has become a unique training ground for students immersing themselves in language and culture and tackling some of the world’s toughest problems.

Imagine standing in a small, crowded alimentari, a specialty grocery shop somewhere in Tuscany. The air is dense with the earthy smell of cured prosciutto and salami, and you’re dying to sample some with a hunk of salty, freshly baked schiacciata bread.

Your Italian isn’t half bad. Now it’s just a question of ordering. You rehearse, break apart, and rearrange the words in your head. You need to get the pronunciation just right so the proprietor doesn’t make The Face. If you’ve ever struggled with language proficiency, you’ve seen it: the furrowed expression of strained attention people get when they discover you don’t really speak their language.

URI language students likely never see The Face.

Alison Otto ’18, a graduate of the German International Engineering Program, was working on an internship at a company near Stuttgart, Germany, when she met up with friends from URI for the annual Wasen spring festival. In the impromptu community of strangers gathered around the communal tables drinking beer, singing, and sharing stories, Otto struck up a conversation with two Germans. When they learned she was from the United States, they were surprised—her German was so good, they didn’t peg her as a foreigner. “That was a real highlight for me because I had started in German 101 my first year, and my fluency improved so much,” she says.

Raising the Bar

Increasing numbers of URI students are adding a second language to their list of achievements, and an institution-wide commitment to fluency and excellence is preparing them for a multicultural, international workplace.

“Our goal is to build a high level of language proficiency and cultural competence so that students are prepared to study abroad,” says Karen de Bruin, chair of the Department of Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures. The department sets ambitious goals for the level of proficiency students attain, and it fosters a culture of immersion on campus. The language department has become a diverse international enclave on campus where students from different continents and cultural traditions converge, converse, and find new ways of seeing the world.

And they’ve earned some recognition for this approach. In a recent New York Times opinion piece, Bénédicte de Montlaur, the cultural counselor of the French Embassy in the United States, argues that Americans should be creating opportunities for students to learn other languages, not slashing those opportunities. And she cites URI among the universities that have “restructured programs to emphasize the ability to work, socialize, and research across languages.”

Cynthia Malambi ’20, originally from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, spent part of her childhood in the Kpomassé refugee camp in Benin. Like many children in West Africa, Malambi learned French in school. She spoke Swahili and Lingala at home, and the camp brought together people from a variety of nations. She understands some Kikongo, Fon, and Mina and can even speak a few words. “We had to use language to connect to each other, so it was something we just picked up without learning it formally,” she says. Malambi continues to seek language as a way to connect at URI, where she majors in political science and French and is also studying Chinese. “I am interested in international human rights, particularly on the continent of Africa. French is spoken in many nations there, and China has been investing widely in Africa over the past decade,” she says.

A Community of Interwoven Cultures

This generation of students at URI has tapped into international education as a way to connect who they are and what they want to do in the world.

“Language is a medium that helps people become more self-aware, and it has the power to transmit values across generations.”
–Richard Lisi ’18

Donna Gamache-Griffiths, director of the International Business Program, says URI’s strength lies in embracing global diversity. “The University has done so much to support the internationalization of our programs and make them accessible for our students. We have forged connections and partnerships with colleges and universities around the world and added a global component to our curricula campus-wide,” she says. “The diversity of our community is a tremendous asset. Many of our students grow up speaking another language in addition to English, and we value that knowledge.”

Richard Lisi ’18, a kinesiology graduate enrolling at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School this fall, studied the Italian language and culture because it’s an important part of his heritage. “Language is a medium that helps people become more self-aware, and it has the power to transmit values across generations,” he says. It also enriches his perspective on his chosen field. “It will help me be more open to the diverse needs of my patients,” Lisi says. “Learning another language gives people a cross-cultural empathy.”

Africa Smith ’18, who graduated with a dual major in Africana studies and political science and a minor in justice, law, and society, grew up speaking English, but her mother, who was born in Costa Rica, is bilingual. Smith chose to participate in a J-Term program in Cuba because she knew that speaking Spanish and connecting with people there would add something to her education. But she was surprised by how much she connected to her own culture. “I didn’t expect to see so many people who looked like me,” she says. She enjoyed learning about the Afro-Cuban music tradition and seeing how different groups within the African diaspora express their culture.

When Smith mentored other students, she encouraged them to consider a trip abroad as part of their college experience. “Sometimes it’s hard to see yourself in a place at first,” she says. “I want to make a space for myself.”

Meredith Shubel ’18, a communications and French major, agrees that studying abroad is something everyone should consider. During her study-abroad experience in France, she met students from France, Australia, Mexico, and Poland, among others. “For me,” says Shubel, the most valuable part was living with people who weren’t from America—and learning new things from them every day.” She noticed that most of her friends spoke at least two languages. “It is much more common for people to speak two or even three languages in other countries,” she adds.

Visionary Programs

Owing, in part, to the success of their programs, the language department has grown during a time when other universities are scaling back or even cutting certain languages. According to surveys conducted by the Modern Language Association, course enrollments in languages other than English at U.S. colleges and universities fell by 9.2 percent between 2013 and 2016. At URI the opposite is true. For the same period at URI, the number of students majoring in languages grew from 511 to 655, a 28 percent increase. Now one of the largest language programs in the nation, the department has increased the number of languages offered, and the number of students pursuing joint majors, double majors, or minors has grown considerably.

Another key to the boom in language study at URI is the high level of collaboration between colleges and departments to create interdisciplinary programs with a global focus. With the founding of the International Engineering Program more than 30 years ago, URI created a successful model that many institutions follow. These signature international programs share key features, including the development of a high level of language mastery and a full year spent abroad to study and work at internships.

The international engineering, business, and computer science programs now offer language tracks in German, French, Spanish, Italian, Japanese, and Chinese. The Chinese Flagship Program challenges students to achieve superior language proficiency and a B.A. in Mandarin Chinese as well as a bachelor’s degree in a chosen field. It is one of only 12 programs in the United States in which students can start with no knowledge of Chinese and progress to a professional level of proficiency while earning a second degree in another discipline. Students in the International Textiles, Fashion Merchandising and Design Program can choose either Italian or French. The International Pharmaceutical Sciences Program offers a dual degree in pharmaceutical sciences (B.S.P.S.) and in French, German, or Italian (B.A.). This year, a new International Studies and Diplomacy Program launches, with language tracks in German, French, Spanish, Italian, and Chinese.

Students follow a rigorous course of language study within the context of their major, learning through language and building vocabulary specific to that discipline. They also master the practical details of living and working in another culture—and even how to order a sandwich without embarrassing themselves.

Uniquely Prepared to Help Change the World

“When you study another culture, you see the world from that perspective, and it helps you treat the world with an equal level of respect”
–Sandra Deeb ’20

How will URI’s language students apply what they’ve learned? Cynthia Malambi will promote human rights and help amplify the voices of refugees throughout the world. Africa Smith will empower communities of color and connect them to opportunities around them. Alison Otto will create clean, renewable energy systems. Richard Lisi will be an empathetic healer and enjoy long conversations with his Italian-born grandfather. As a technical writer for a Rhode Island PR firm, Meredith Shubel is already helping to educate people in emerging technologies, like infrared sensors for autonomous vehicles. She is also staying in touch with friends from around the world and working on mastering Spanish and Russian.

Sandra Deeb ’20, a French IEP student, believes that learning a language is important because it makes us care about each other more. “When you study another culture, you see the world from that perspective, and it helps you treat the world with an equal level of respect,” she says.

Deeb has a strong will to do good in the world, and the field of ocean engineering interests her because of the potential for discovering new forms of renewable energy. Her family came to the United States from Syria. “In that part of the world, ongoing conflicts are often related to fossil fuel. Working on sustainable forms of energy is one way that I can help,” she says.

“There is inherent value in the study of the humanities,” says Sigrid Berka, executive director of the International Engineering Program. “The liberal arts foundation students receive by learning the language, the literature, and the perspective of another culture builds not only intellectual skills like critical thinking and novel approaches to problem solving, but also empathy and altruism.”