DU students have a significant new campus resource: the Center for World Languages and Cultures.
The center’s goal is to promote intercultural communication through a University-wide resource center that supports languages and literatures education and builds bridges between disciplines across campus.
Professor Kathy Mahnke, director of the center, says it will enhance students’ preparation when studying abroad and in their mandatory language studies. It will also “leave DU graduates better prepared for the global citizenship that is their inheritance as adults of the 21st century,” Mahnke says.
The center — located on the second floor of Sturm Hall — is designed to be a welcoming and comfortable place for undergraduate and graduate students to spend time in groups or individually.
“We also have a goal of reaching out to the large international community here on campus,” Mahnke says. “Their potential for contributing to and gaining from the vitality of this campus is limitless.”
The center also will examine DU’s current language placement and proficiency assessments with an eye toward making them more efficient and effective for students.
The center also will be an important resource for faculty by offering guidance on how to integrate technology into languages and culture education, finding tutors for students and assessing language proficiency.
“We are thrilled to benefit from Kathy’s vast linguistics experience,” says Anne McCall, dean of Arts Humanities and Social Sciences. “I’m so pleased that this center will make the study of languages and literatures at the global level more comprehensively robust for our students.”