To save a language they love, student enthusiasts rallied and thrusted posters in the air in protest of the academic hold on the German Minor program. This was held the same day Hillary Clinton came to visit, Friday, October 16. While the numbers for the protest weren’t quite as high as Clinton’s crowd, there was still substantial support.
The group started on the front lawn of the Student Center, playing German music and cheering “Wir Sind (we are) Keene State!” They sported German flags as capes, and adorned red, yellow and black paint on their faces. In addition, many of them wore self-designed t-shirts, as all the money put into the efforts were their own proceeds. As spectators passed by, they were given slips of paper with more information about where to sign a petition to keep the minor available.
“We [already have] over 800 signatures [on our petition] on change.org,” Keene State College Senior Amie Gagnon said.
KSC junior Victoria Tucker said that they want the German minor to be around for future students; that’s what they’re really fighting for.
“Our hope is that this program is long-lasting after we’re gone. It’s so frustrating because all these student are getting an awesome entry into the program and then there’s no way to go on,”Tucker said.
Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Walter Zakahi said that the students already enrolled in the German minor will be able to continue their studies until they graduate.
“We didn’t stop it and take it away…we’re doing what we call a ‘teaching out.’ So if you put a program on hold…you have a responsibility and we take that responsibility seriously, that anybody who came in and had declared a German minor before we put it on hold will be able to complete that,” Zakahi said.
Zakahi said that this decision was being debated long before he got here in 2014. He said in 2010, there was a motion to potentially move the German minor over to the History major. Zakahi said that now, in 2015, the funds just aren’t there.
Meghan Marcucci / Equinox Staff
“The important thing to remember is that German will continue to be offered as a language here at KSC [in the basic 100 levels],” Zakahi said.
Gagnon said that even if they keep just the basic 100 levels for German that it won’t be sufficient. “It’s like the one Italian course offered. It’s not enough; it’s not very good for diversity at all,” she said.
Professor of Modern Languages Stephen Hawes said he finds it will be damaging to students if the German Minor is eliminated.
“If they just leave three basic intro to German classes, it’s going to lose interest, and then the numbers will dwindle and that will [lead to] German being taken out of the books,” Hawes said.
Hawes said he finds that cultural diversity is crucial for students; he encourages his own students to even study two languages in addition to already knowing English, saying it will help them in the real world.
“No matter what field you’re getting into, even being proficient in two languages, it’s better for them,” he said. “German [in particular] is very important in the world economy…for design and engineering, German is the language as far as manufacturing,” Hawes said.
Hawes also said the main professor for German, Alison Pantesco, has won recognition and awards for her teaching methods.
“She’s so good at teaching languages that it’s really drummed up a lot of interest in German,” Hawes said.
KSC junior Mikhail Lavrentyev said of the German professors, “[Their enthusiasm] makes you want to learn. It’s no game, even with people who struggle, [Professor Alison Pantesco] supports them and she brings them back to believing in the language. It would be sad to see her go because she’s one of the best teachers I’ve ever had.”
He said he doesn’t understand why, with such passionate professors we put so much money into sports and new buildings, but have to slim down the language options.
Tucker said that she found out that there are different budgets for the buildings and athletics, however she finds it frustrating that KSC President Anne Huot gets paid so much especially when enrollment is down.
“Why are we giving her that much money when we have so fewer students as well, and then we can’t even afford to fund two adjunct professors that run the entire [German] program?” Tucker said.
Gagnon agreed.
“It’s not a big program, so when they argue that it’s financial, it doesn’t make much sense because they wouldn’t be taking much money to run it anyway,” Gagnon said.
Another issue some people are concerned with is how the German minor coincides with the Holocaust and Genocide major.
KSC Senior and Holocaust and Genocide major Dylan Renner said the German Minor doesn’t really affect him personally. However, Renner said he has sympathy for the people who are passionate about the language.
“I feel like getting out there and advocating for it with your voice and your body is much more, it’s heard much more soundly,” Renner said.
Renner said he himself traveled to Poland last semester. Renner said, “Everyone speaks English and everyone speaks their native language. I definitely believe, after seeing how bilingual people are in Europe, it’s kind of distasteful how we [Americans are].”
Chair of the Holocaust and Genocide Studies Department Paul Vincent said the academic hold on the German minor hits him strongly since he already feels there aren’t enough languages offered, which puts the school in a fragile state concerning the education.
“My sense of the liberal arts education at the undergraduate level is something that embraces the idea of foreign languages. If I had my druthers, there would be a full year commitment to a foreign language as part of the ISP program,” Vincent said.
He said his concern is that in many other places in the world, especially in Europe, many people speak English in addition to their home language. Vincent said learning a language is just as essential as learning math and writing, saying that no one is disputing we need to get rid of these curriculums, and that learning a modern language should be just as respected.
“It’s not just learning the language…but you’re learning the culture. It’s not simply finding the final answer, it’s the process of…thinking about what you’re doing that’s so important,” Vincent said.
Some argue it’s a shame if we discontinue the minor since we currently share a culture with Germany.
“Einbeck is our sister city,” Gagnon said.
According to http://www.sister-cities.org/, a sister city is an international relationship between two cities in different countries, that are based on volunteer efforts, as well as persons from municipal government or non-profits. This relationship is to encourage well-being and guidance for each city involved.
“[It] forms this cultural awareness and international connection. We’ve also dedicated our fountain at the gazebo to them,” Gagnon said.
Provost Zakahi said the main reason why the German minor has been put on hold is that there just aren’t the funds to hire someone full-time.
“We’re not to going to assume we’re going to put [money] into places [it’s already] been; we might, [but] what we want is for the modern languages to really go through a planning process and figure out what is the best interest of the future of the department, students and institution,” Zakahi said.
With a public protest and petition clearly underway, some might say the interest has already been shown and it’s asking “sprechen sie deutsch?” (do you speak German?)
Dorothy can be contacted at dengland@kscequinox.com