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New Minor Announced

New Minor Announced

Chestnut Hill College has just announced the addition of an interdisciplinary
minor in European Union and European Studies to its academic roster. CHC students will soon have the opportunity to earn a minor in European Union and European Studies.

Over the course of two years, the College will launch the minor, which includes a pilot Language Across the Curriculum (LAC) model, distance-learning and professional development components and European Union-related seminars. A two-year grant of $148,797 from the Department of Education makes this project possible. The College will match the grant through donor contributions.

Mary Helen Kashuba, SSJ, D.M.L., professor of French and Russian and chair of the Foreign Language and Literature Department will direct the project.

“European Union and European Studies is a relatively new field of study that makes us unique in this region,” says Kashuba. “The grant will help many departments here at the College and encourage the study of world languages and we hope to provide a model for institutions similar to ours.”

The LAC model allows students taking French, Spanish, German and Italian to strengthen their skills while learning more about the cultural legacies of Europe through issue-relavant courses.

The EU seminars will be open to area K-12 teachers, community college faculty and faculty members of colleges and universities within the Southeastern Pennsylvania Consortium for Higher Education.

The grant was made possible through the Undergraduate International Studies and Foreign Language (UISFL) Program within the U.S. Department of Education. The program funds projects that create, plan, develop and implement programs to improve undergraduate instruction in international studies and foreign language.

“I am grateful for this grant and the valuable educational opportunities it will offer both our students and faculty,” says Carol Jean Vale, SSJ, Ph.D., CHC’s president. “Having this minor while expanding foreign language learning opportunities through the LAC model will further develop our students’ cultural awareness and ability to interact within a global community.” 

At least seven European educational institutions will host lectures and provide study abroad opportunities as part of the partnership agreement through the grant. To read more about the UISFL grant and find the complete list of institutions involved in this grant initiative, read the press release at the U.S. Department of Education website.

— Brenda Lange

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