Welcome to the Modern Languages Department

The Department of Modern Languages offers students of every discipline a wide range of opportunities. Come experience both the intellectual and personal enrichment that comes with learning new languages, and encountering the diverse cultures that they represent. Our department features some of the most skilled teaching faculty on campus, and much of the department's research is aimed at acquisition of additional languages, and enhanced learning through literary and cultural studies as well as technology.

Department News:

During the week of November 2-6, 2009, the Department of Modern Languages welcomed Distinguished-Scholar-in-Residence Tim McNamara, Professor of Applied Linguistics at the University of Melbourne.  His visit was sponsored by a grant from the journal Language Learning.  Dr. McNamara delivered a plenary presentation entitled "Challenges in the Performance Assessment of Speaking at Advanced Levels”. Read more about the presentation by viewing the flier.

Dick Tucker has been named Associate Vice Provost for Education-Qatar for the 2009/10 academic year. He assumes this position in addition to continuing his ongoing faculty role in Modern Languages.

Professor Mariana Achugar has been named a 2009 Guggenheim Fellow. During her yearlong fellowship, by following nine high school students from different political, social and educational backgrounds, Mariana will explore what Uruguayan teenagers know about the military dictatorship and how they learn about it. Read the Carnegie Mellon Today article about her experiences in Uruguay.

Professors Gabi Eichmanns and Naoko Taguchi have been named 2009 Wimmer Fellows by the Eberly Center for Teaching Excellence. Gabi will develop a curriculum and handbook for teaching globalization studies. Naoko will design a new course on pragmatics to enhance students’ awareness of how and why people use language in social contexts in their everyday communication and to equip students with strategies for learning pragmatics as second language learners.

Professor Therese Tardio is the 2009 recipient of the University’s Academic Advising Award for Outstanding Contributions to Academic Advising and Mentoring.

Nancy Monda, Business Manager, was awarded the University's 2009-2010
Barbara Lazarus Award for Culture and Climate for extraordinary leadership
and substantial contributions to improving the culture and climate in the
university community.

Barbara Freed, Professor of French Studies and Applied Linguistics in the Department of Modern Languages has been named an Officier de l'ordre des Palmes académiques (Officer in the Order of Academic Palms) by the French Minister of Education. The Order of Les Palmes académiques, originally created in 1808 by Napoleon I, recognizes and “honors members of the educational community, French citizens as well as foreigners, who have rendered distinguished service to Education, and have contributed to the expansion of French culture in the world."

Stephen Brockmann, Professor of German, has been elected to a two-year term as Vice President of the German Studies Association, starting January 1, 2009, to be followed by a two-year term as President.

Department Alumni News:
Through the extremely generous support of alumna, Patricia Askwith Kenner, who established the Endowed Fund for International Studies, our department is able to enhance international experiences for both undergraduate and graduate students. The fund enables us to provide study abroad scholarships, publication of Polyglot, the multilingual newsletter which is written and produced by our undergraduate students, and many other extracurricular activities.