Service Learning
FLL Experiential & Service Learning
Omaha is a diverse city where a wide variety of languages are spoken and many cultural backgrounds are present. In response, the Department of Foreign Languages and Literature sees this as an educational opportunity, and we regularly include service-learning components in our courses. This not only gives students a chance to use and apply the knowledge and language skills that they are learning, but also allows them to connect with the relevant local communities. Many of our projects seek to expand access to information and educational resources specific to non-English speaking communities in Omaha and the state of Nebraska. Students who participate in these projects are able to achieve first-hand knowledge on field-specific practices. These collaborations between students and community partners allow for future career opportunities that will be mutually beneficial.
Past Events
Evento Cultural (Cultural Event)
Over the course of the semester, students in SPAN 1110, 1120, 2110 and 2120 attend one event organized within the Spanish-speaking community or relating to Latino issues at our university, locally in Omaha, in the state of Nebraska, or where they reside is the US. The purpose is for students to get acquainted with local US Latino and world-wide Spanish-speaking cultures and histories. This exposes them both to the language and those who speak it within the community and helps connect them to everyday opportunities to use the language and immerse themselves in the culture.
Student Samuel Logeman had a very memorable experience while attending a cultural event. He had an unexpected meeting across four generations:
“Turning the corner to see the first installation my mom exclaimed “That’s my grandma!” and sure enough there was a large black and white framed picture of my great grandma, Juvencia Reyes, hanging on the wall. […] Next to her picture was a transcript of an interview from her. […] There was also an audio recording of my great grandma which we listened to. It was honestly amazing to hear my great grandma’s voice for the first time […] It was also emotional for my mom because she had not seen a picture of her grandma or heard her voice in over 20 years.”
South Omaha Scavenger Hunt
Every semester, students in SPAN 2110 visit a Spanish-speaking area in the city of Omaha and complete a scavenger hunt. This allows them to see first-hand that Spanish is not just a language that we study in our little bubble in the university. This language and these cultures are alive in our country and our city! The area that students visit in small groups is La Veinticuatro (24th Street, between L Street and Q Street). During the Scavenger Hunt, students eat at a restaurant, go to a grocery store and find specific products and publications in Spanish, etc. This assignment includes an action report with pictures, as well as an essay in which students reflect on this intercultural experience in their own hometown.
Spring 2022 Experiential & Service Learning Projects
Structure of Spanish
SPAN 4220 students will develop an interactive activity (e.g., scavenger hunt, guided walking tour) that features and teaches about the rich culture, history, and tradition of Latinx peoples in Nebraska. The finished activity will be used in the future by students enrolled in freshman Spanish courses. Through this activity, students in SPAN 4220 will put to use their Spanish skills by either reading, writing, or speaking in Spanish, and they will increase their knowledge about Latinx individuals living in Nebraska. At the same time, they will create an artifact that will help beginning Spanish students learn more about Nebraska and the presence of Latinx peoples living in the state.
Spanish for Heritage Speakers II
One School, One Book Program
SPAN 3020: Spanish for Heritage Speakers II undergraduate students will have the opportunity to engage in a Service Learning project encompassing interdisciplinary collaboration with Crestridge Elementary School students. This Service Learning project has UNO students identify limitations in book translations and design supplementary materials such as lesson plans, quizzes, letters, and bookmarks revolving around the book Esperanza Renace. Crestridge students will have the opportunity of engaging and further their learning with these materials as part of their curriculum during the Fall 2022 semester
Linguistic Justice & Latino Health
Students in Dr. Dauphinais’ SPAN 4970 class partnered with The Wellbeing Partners. Students worked with the community partner to conduct health narrative interviews among the Spanish-speaking community in Omaha about language and mental health. Students analyzed transcribed, translated, and analyzed these narratives to look at ways health communication from healthcare providers can reduce language barriers and incorporate greater cultural humility. These interviews and narratives were then used by The Wellbeing Partners to create a social media campaign within the Omaha Latino community to increase mental health awareness and access to mental health resources.
Fall 2021 Service Learning Projects
Research Methods
In Fall 2021, the graduate students enrolled in Dr. Cecilia Tocaimaza-Hatch's FLNG 8020 partnered with ADL (Anti Defamation League). ADL hosts a walk every November where people are able to visit sights in Omaha that are significant to the civil rights movement. With the COVID pandemic, starting in 2020, ADL looked to provide participants with a virtual alternative for the in-person walk where people could learn about historical places in Omaha online.
Students in FLNG 8020 contributed to this project by researching sites in Omaha that have historical significance to the civil rights movement and designing lesson plans and materials that high school teachers can incorporate into their curriculum. All the materials produced by FLNG 8020 students will be featured in ADL’s site supporting the November walk.
Advanced Spanish Conversation & Spanish Conversation and Pronunciation
Since the state of Nebraska has funds to help small and medium-sized businesses, as well as self-employed workers affected by the pandemic, it is urgent to produce a quantitative and qualitative study that records the adverse effects of the pandemic on those businesses whose owners are Latino, in order to justify that a portion of available state funds can also reach this segment of the population. Thus, Dr. Steven Torres and Dr. Jose Sequeros-Valle's SPAN 4030 & 3030 students participate in a community engagement and research project in South Omaha that will primarily benefit the Latino population. Students work in pairs to complete interviews and surveys to collect data.
Fall 2020 Service Learning Projects
Latin America in Context
Dr. Garcia’s Fall 2020 SPAN 3050: Latin America in Context class included a weekly exploration of simple mindfulness practices which have a positive impact in our levels of happiness, especially during the COVID pandemic before vaccines became available. As part of this Community Outreach Project, students created a YouTube playlist, sharing in Spanish their favorite Practices of Happiness, encouraging Spanish-speaking community members to take simple but effective steps to improve emotional and physical wellbeing.
Prácticas de Felicidad |Practices of Happiness Community Outreach Project