School of Education, Humanities, and Social Sciences
(440) 826-2244
The native language of 400 million people across the world, Spanish is a culturally enriching and academically enhancing program of study. It is an outstanding major for students preparing for an increasingly global society.
A Spanish major builds competencies in reading, writing, speaking and language comprehension. Coursework includes literature, cultural history, civilization and contemporary lifestyles of Spanish and Latin Americans.
Baldwin Wallace's practical approach links rigorous language study to real life. You'll learn to view the world through a diverse cultural lens as you probe current events, intercultural communication and sensitivities, as well as other topics.
Experiential learning is central to the program. You can attend cultural events and culinary field trips, join student organizations and participate in a Spanish language table (La Tertulia).
Study abroad offers outstanding opportunities for year-long, semester, six- or two-week immersion experiences. Spain, South America and Latin America are some of the options available to you.
Our faculty works with students to help them gain a comprehensive understanding of the Spanish language.
The Spanish for the professions minor helps students in any major build competencies in handling a variety of communicative tasks with Spanish-speaking people and communities.
BW's Spanish Club participates in several events throughout the year, including a Day of the Dead celebration.
Two inductees into the National Hispanic Honor Society, Sigma Delta Pi.
Spanish Language Tables offer students opportunities to participate in weekly conversation tables and cultural events.
Benefits of learning a foreign language are multi-fold and include:
Government, education, business and nonprofit sectors seek individuals who are fluent in two or more languages. Examples of positions include:
With the goal of helping students in any major build competencies in handling a variety of communicative tasks with Spanish-speaking people and communities, BW is offering a Spanish for the professions minor. The new program includes optional service-learning courses as well as a broad range of classes focused on healthcare and other professions.
If you would like to become a Spanish teacher, BW has an outstanding teacher education program.
Offered as a major and minor, Spanish blends comprehensive coursework with dynamic practical application.
It is an outstanding companion major or minor to other disciplines, including business, communication, sociology and political science.
Spanish courses are open to students of all majors. If you have previously taken classes in Spanish in high school, you will be required to complete a placement test prior to registering for courses.
BW also offers a French minor and courses in Arabic, Chinese, German and Italian.
The Spanish major prepares students to:
Course descriptions, requirements for the major and additional information can be found in the University Catalog.
Experiential learning bridges classroom study with real-world opportunities. You can enhance your studies through internships, co-curricular activities and other learning opportunities that include:
Sigma Delta Pi - National Honorary in Spanish
Members must have completed three years of study of college-level Spanish (18 semester credit hours) or the equivalent thereof, including at least three semester hours of a course in Hispanic literature or Hispanic culture and civilization (Spanish for the professions may be considered as a Hispanic culture course, provided that culture is the foundation of the course content). Members must be at the junior or senior level level; must have a minimal grade point average of 3.0 on a 4.0 point scale in all Spanish courses taken; must rank in the upper 35% of their class (and/or have at least a 3.2 cumulative grade point average) - sophomore, junior, or senior - and must have completed at least three semesters or five quarters of college work.
Spanish Club
Open to all students, BW's Spanish Club seeks to represent the cultures of Spanish-speaking countries to the BW community, as well as to promote the use of the Spanish language. The club aims to increase the awareness of Spanish/Hispanic cultures around the world through art, literature, history, traditions, guest speakers and more. It also promotes the learning and use of the Spanish language on the BW campus and in the surrounding area. Spanish Club aids in volunteer efforts that affect people from Spanish speaking countries or aid people in understanding cultural/language differences outside of the BW community.
BW International Film Series
The BW International Film Series is a student organization funded by the Student Government and supported by the French Club, German Club, Spanish Club, Middle Eastern Culture Club, Chinese Club and Italian Club. For further information, please contact Dr. Nadia Sahely at nsahely@bw.edu.
Jessica
Villacres
'20
is
a
speech-language
pathology
graduate
student
in
Indiana
University's
STEPS
bilingual
training
program.
She
earned
a
degree
in
Spanish
and
communication
sciences
&
disorders
and
was
a
2020
Fulbright
recipient.
She
has
worked
as
a
Spanish
translator
for
COAR
Peace
Mission
and
the
Cleveland
Office
of
Minority
Health.
Katie
Fowler
'20
is
a
speech-language
pathology
master's
student
at
Case
Western
Reserve
University
and
an
intern
at
The
Orange
Effect
Foundation.
She
is
working
on
a
graduate
meta-analysis
pertaining
to
fluency
disorders.
She
earned
a
B.S.
in
communication
sciences
&
disorders
and
a
B.A.
Spanish.
Rachel
Szeles
'17
is
currently
a
graduate
student
at
the
University
of
Cincinnati.
She
received
a
double
degree
in
psychology
and
Spanish
from
BW.
She
has
worked
as
a
Spanish
translator
for
Big
Brothers
Big
Sisters
of
America
as
well
as
a
translator
and
legal
assistant
at
Liner
Legal.
Brad
Weeder
'17
received
a
double
degree
in
psychology
and
Spanish
from
BW.
He
has
worked
as
a
Spanish
translator
for
Medical
Mutual,
Stockyard,
Clark-Fulton,
Brooklyn
Center
and
the
Berea
School
District.
He
became
TEFL/TESOL
certified
to
teach
English
at
Interamerican
Studies
(CEDEI)
in
Cuenca,
Ecuador
in
2017-19.
Jennifer
Jouriles
'16
works
as
an
accountant
at
the
Cleveland
Clinic,
where
she
utilizes
both
of
her
disciplines
and
also
traveled
to
Honduras
on
a
medical
mission
trip
as
a
part
of
international
outreach.
She
received
a
double
degree
in
accounting
and
Spanish
from
BW
and
a
Master's
in
Latin
American
and
Caribbean
Studies
from
University
of
Chicago.
Chair, Department of World Languages, Literatures and Cultures
Spanish Program Coordinator
Ph.D., The University of Georgia
Associate Professor
Ph.D., University of Kentucky
Karen Barahona
Chair, Department of World Languages, Literatures and Cultures
Spanish Program Coordinator
Associate Professor
Ph.D., The University of Georgia
Matthew Feinberg
Associate Professor
Ph.D., University of Kentucky
Gilma Gamboa
Lecturer
M.A., Cleveland State University
Rebeca Monge Hidalgo
Lecturer
M.A., University of La Rioja, Spain