The Spanish department at Calvin
Offering 30 courses, three off-campus semester programs and numerous off-campus interim trips, the Spanish department at Calvin College provides students with world-class opportunities to develop their language and cultural engagement skills.
At the heart of Spanish education at Calvin is a desire to see students break down barriers that exist between races, cultures and nations so that they can better understand their role in fulfilling Christ's command to love one's neighbor as oneself.
Program overview
The Spanish department offers 30 courses in language (including conversation, grammar and composition), Hispanic culture, linguistics, the literature of Spain and Latin America, business Spanish, medical Spanish and more.
Majors and minor programs in the department include:
- Spanish major
- Spanish education majors (secondary, elementary and K-12)
- Spanish minor
- Spanish education minors (secondary, elementary and K-12)
- Bilingual education minor
- ESL minors (for education and non-education majors)
- Latin American Studies minor
Language courses are also available for students needing to fulfill core curriculum requirements.
Off-Campus study
Each year, over 100 Spanish majors and other Spanish students take advantage of off-campus programs in Spain, Honduras, Peru and many other Spanish-speaking countries through off-campus interim courses.
- The program in Honduras includes full immersion in a Latin American culture and has an international development focus.
- The program in Spain is offered in both the fall and spring semesters, with the fall semester geared towards students fulfilling core curriculum language requirements and the spring semester geared towards Spanish majors and minors.
- The program in Peru features excusions to Machu Picchu, Cañón del Colca, and Lake Titicaca, offering students the opportunity to live with a Peruvian family and learn about Peruvian culture.
Spanish activities
Language education in the Spanish department doesn't stop when students leave the classroom. Opportunities abound to further engage with the language and culture of Spanish-speaking peoples, including:
- Spanish House - an on-campus full-immersion living community for students of Spanish.
- Spanish Table - a laid-back way to get practice in Spanish conversation in the dining halls.
- Spanish Chapel - a weekly opportunity to worship with others in Spanish.
- Service-Learning in the community - a way to improve Spanish skills by engaging with the 32,000 hispanics living in the Grand Rapids area.
- Conversation groups - weekly conversations with advanced Spanish speakers for students of Spanish at Calvin.
- Student employment - a paid opportunity to take your advanced-level language skills and use them to help others improve their Spanish.
Careers in Spanish
Calvin's Spanish graduates have gone on use their language skills and cultural savvy in international business, teaching, engineering, community organizing and much more. Many graduates also work in developing countries in the Spanish speaking world, using their degrees to pursue international development work or missions.
Spanish faculty
Fifteen full-time professors, all of whom have lived and studied abroad, bring years of dedication and experience to the Spanish classroom at Calvin.
Each faculty member maintains an active life of research and scholarship while also focusing on equipping and encouraging students to use their gifts for God's kingdom. Students regularly have opportunities to partner with professors in their research.
