Graduate Maggie Day hired at Al Arab network; Orion Wilcox earns honors

OXFORD, Miss. – The University of Mississippi’s Arabic language program is seeing success among both its graduates and current students.

Maggie Day, a 2012 graduate, is heading to Bahrain as a producer for Bloomberg TV. She will produce content as part of the Al Arab network, which is completely in Arabic. Day, who was a member of the Sally McDonnell Barksdale Honors College, earned a bachelor of arts in broadcast journalism and a bachelor of arts in political science, as well as a minor in Arabic. “Foreign correspondents’ stories of the Middle East fascinated me, and I wondered if we (on the other side of the television) were getting the truth,” Day said. “After coming on with Bloomberg as a producer, I trained in London, England, for six months. Now, we are currently setting up Al-Arab. Bloomberg will provide six hours of financial content per day for Al-Arab, so my job is to make sure that gets to air.”

Day, a native of Fayetteville, Ark., said the best part of the Arabic program at Ole Miss was the camaraderie between the students and program director Allen Clark.

“We enjoyed small, intensive classes,” Day said. “I had classes with the same seven students and Dr. Clark for three years, so we all became very close. It is great to see how the language has propelled all of our academic and professional careers.”

The university’s Arabic program is founded on the functional approach to language learning and provides its Arabic-language learners with opportunities to spend summers abroad in an Arab country during their sophomore, junior and senior years.

The Arabic program is the reason she has a career in international journalism, Day said.

“So much information is miscommunicated because of poor translation, which in turn leads to incorrect assumptions of the Arab world,” said Day, who was a cheerleader and the 2011 UM homecoming queen. “Studying Arabic at Ole Miss not only gave me an edge in attaining a job over other college graduates, but has helped me to do my job well, in that I can better communicate the stories coming from such a critical region.”

Other students are enjoying success in the program. Orion Wilcox, a junior economics major with a minor in Arabic, has been awarded a superior ranking in the Oral Proficiency Interview, which is conducted by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages.

Wilcox, a member of the Sally McDonnell Barksdale Honors College, said that being recognized as superior was gratifying because it was always his goal.

“When I entered college I wanted to learn a foreign language and I felt like I was more intrigued by less commonly taught languages,” said Wilcox, a native of Bay St. Louis. “I considered Chinese, Japanese and Arabic, but in the end I found that I was really enthralled by the beauty and mystery of the Arabic language.

“It was kind of funny because my mom didn’t actually think it was such a great idea at first because I had been a C student in Spanish in high school. We agreed that I would take Arabic my first semester and see how it goes. Three years later, I think it was a good decision.”

Marvis Kilgore (Spanish) is now working teaching English in Doha, Qatar.  After finishing the Teach for America Program in 2007 in Houston, Marvis came to Ole Miss to study for an MA in Spanish.

Stephanie Hirscher Beam (German, 2011) writes that she was excited to be offered a teaching position at a local high school immediately after graduation. She is now in her second year of teaching four levels of German to grades 9 through 12, and she hopes to be doing this until she retires. She says she has amazing students, who keeps Stephanie on her toes and entertained all day long!

Catherine Couper (graduated 2012) tells us that she is a Masters in Public Health candidate at the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University. She is in the Hubert Department of Global Health, focusing on Sexual, Reproductive Health and Population Studies. Completing her M.A. in Spanish  at Ole Miss enables her continued work within the Hispanic population in Georgia. She is currently a research assistant for the Hispanic Health Coalition of Georgia investigating diabetes and obesity preventions for Latino children and adolescents. Catherine will serve as the vice president of HOLA (Health Organization for Latin America) for the 2013 school year at the Rollins School of Public Health. Catherine will spend the summer of 2013 abroad in Latin America to complete her degree’s practicum requirement.

Missy Green (Spanish, 2011) reports: Since graduation I’ve begun work as the International Liaison for a national restaurant industry publication, PMQ.  With the languages classes I took during my Masters I acquired the skills to communicate with professionals in Spain, Brazil and Italy.  I now live in Paris, a short flight away from various European food shows, always appreciative of the time management and long-term project skills I learned during my Masters.  Most importantly, Ole Miss pushed me to accomplish unthinkable tasks like teaching a class on my own or taking comprehensive exams.  Those daunting experiences showed me that you will never feel ready for the big things in life.  You just have to dive in and learn from your mistakes with grace.

Catherine Lawhorn (graduated 2011, nee Millette) says: After graduation, I married and moved to Nashville, TN. My first year was a little crazy, working various part-time jobs! I taught basic Spanish at Volunteer State Community college as an adjunct instructor, worked as a recruiting administrator, did private tutoring, and also a couple of translating projects for Cracker Barrel’s Employee Relations Department. This year I am teaching English, Spanish, and World History at the Learning Lab, a small school and tutoring center. I also provide after-school tutoring in writing, Spanish, and ACT prep. I teach a couple of children and adult classes for the Tennessee Foreign Language Institute, an agency that offers ESL and foreign language classes to students of all ages. I am getting lots of experience this year and staying very busy!

Ben Quilter (graduated 2010) writes from Linkedin: Regarding my work activities after graduation, I moved to Cologne, Germany, shortly after graduation and spent some time learning German.  Then in the summer of 2011, I started an internship with Learnship Networks GmbH, an online language school focused on corporate language training.  After my internship, I started working full-time for the company as a team leader in a department responsible for trainer coordination. With regards to how Spanish has helped me, I work in a multinational team so being able to speak to my colleagues and our Spanish trainers in their native language is a great help. Additionally, the pedagogical experience I gained from teaching as a graduate assistant is useful for dealing with our language trainers and the issues they face.

In this year’s contest, there were 946 essays submitted from 57 universities, colleges, and institutions across the nation. Each essay was ranked by three judges in Russia, and often the results were simply too close to call.

1st Place – Arpi Grigoryan  – Heritage Learners, Level 3

2nd Place – Timur Brodskiy – Heritage Learners, Level 2  

and an Honorable Mention in Non-Heritage Learners, Level 2 – Caroline Lyell

Congratulations!

Spring 2013

El Nuevo teatro español y latinoamericano.  Un studio transatlantic:  1960 – 1980, was published by the Society of Spanish and Spanish-American

Studies at the University of Colorado at Boulder in 2004.  The book explores the alleged “alternative theatre” – a counterpoint to commercial theatre – of José Sanchis Sinisterra from Spain and Enrique Buenaventura from Colombia.  The alternative theatre of these two decades functions as a vehicle of dissent against the authoritarian pressure of the dictatorial governments of the era.  The book also examines several theatrical festivals in Spain, Chile, and Argentina.  All three countries were living under dictatorships during the period under study, and the festivals provided a forum for dissent against these repressive regimes.  The Latin American festivals also included performances by Spanish groups, and thus truly represented a forum for the exploration of Ibero-American relations, history, and collective identity.

Languages: German • Japanese • Russian

Course Information: No prior language experience is required. In fact, students with no prior language experience are preferred as the students will embark on the language learning experience together. The program is structured so that you can complete your minor in the language of your choice in 2 years. Enjoy smaller class sizes and a collaborative language-learning environment.

BASIC PROGRAM FORMAT: Summer I (prior to Freshman Year). This on-campus intensive language immersion offers six hours in the language of your choice. Housing is available on campus in residence halls and classes will be taught by a University of Mississippi instructor. Fall Semester I (of Freshman Year). Students complete the first intermediate-level course. Spring Semester I (of Freshman Year). Students complete the second intermediate-level course. Summer II (following Freshman Year). Students participate in the approved 4-week study abroad program, earning six hours of credit. Fall and Spring Semester II (of Sophomore Year). Participants complete their remaining upper-level credits to earn a minor in the intended language. If available, interested students may continue on in their language study to earn a major.

Deadline to apply is May 31st. The application is available for download at: http://modernlanguages.olemiss.edu

“One month in the initiative program passes by in an instant, and in that instant, you take in a vast amount of information, but the challenge is made doable thanks to fantastic professors who are always willing to lend a helping hand. The month I spent learning Japanese in the initiative program was incredible, and the subsequent trip to Osaka, Japan, was equally spectacular. Definitely one of the most memorable experiences of my life.” —Garth McClure, Studied at Osaka Gakuin University, Summer 2010.

For more information on the UM Language Initiative, contact Modern Languages at dawnaw@olemiss.edu or 662-915-7298. Applications for UM Language Initiative must be postmarked by May 1st and submitted to: Department of Modern Languages, C-115 Bondurant Hall, P.O. Box 1848, University, MS 38677-1848.

The University complies with all applicable laws regarding affirmative action and equal opportunity in all its activities and programs and does not discriminate against anyone protected by law because of age, color, disability, national origin, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, handicap, or status as a veteran or disabled veteran.