While the United States and Europe struggle with deficits and threats to economic recovery, Latin America is in a period of unprecedented economic and political growth.

To capitalize on opportunities for students arising from the growth of our neighbors to the south, and to further develop its commitment to a global curriculum, West Virginia University’s Eberly College of Arts and Sciences has created a multidisciplinary Latin American Studies Program.

“It is a great satisfaction not only to see that the project has coalesced, but to know that we have already a significant group of students ready to declare their majors or minors,” said �ngel Tuninetti, chair of the Department of World Languages, Literatures and Linguistics. “The College anticipates that this offering will be beneficial not only to students studying in the arts and sciences, but those in engineering and business majors who may want to focus their careers on this growing region.”

The program, which was officially approved in February, had been in the development stages since 2008. It offers students the opportunity to receive a major or minor in Latin American Studies.

Ten faculty members from the Eberly College departments of history, geology and geography, political science, sociology and anthropology, and world languages, literatures and linguistics worked together to develop the program, which will utilize courses that were already offered throughout the University. Students may enroll in these courses in order to work towards a specialized degree.

Victoria Garrett, teaching assistant professor of Spanish in the Department of World Languages, Literatures and Linguistics, will direct the Latin American Studies Program and advise its majors. Garrett teaches interdisciplinary courses on Latin American literature and culture in Spanish and in English translation, as well as advanced Spanish courses.

She received her doctoral degree in Hispanic Languages and Literatures from the University of California-Los Angeles. She also received a master’s degree in Romance Languages and Literatures and a certificate in Latin American Studies from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, and a bachelor’s degree in English and Spanish from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
For more information, contact Victoria Garrett, at 304-293-8316, or Victoria.Garrett@mail.wvu.edu

-WVU-

jl/6/13/12

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