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I guess this will be the only language they'll know how to say "good-bye" in ...

People are beginning to question SUNY Albany’s committment to its motto, “the world within reach.” According to Inside Higher Ed, the university announced Friday that it will be ending admissions to all its language programs in French, Italian, Russian, and classics–with only Spanish left after all the current language students graduate. This leaves 10 tenured faculty members with only two years of employment to help current students finish degrees before they will have to move on to a new place. 20 adjunct faculty members are likely going to be in the same boat.

Sound familiar? I thought so, too. SUNY Albany had become a resource for some of RPI’s students who wanted to pursue classes in languages after the Institute cut its language program in 2009. I really have to wonder why the language program is always the focus of budget cuts; the programs have merit in introducing students to other cultures and becoming world citizens, instead of the stereotypical “ignorant American.”

While RPI is supposed to be continuing the language program through the Center for Social and Cognitive Networks, I’m not quite sure what Albany will do about the cut. Approximately 500 students enroll in French alone each year, according to the article.

Maybe RPI can reach out to Albany on a collaborative effort with the Center for Social and Cognitive Networks–either for faculty-sharing with the Center or some sort of distance learning for SUNY Albany students? Though I may just be naive to the way that private and public schools can interact, it would give an opportunity for students from both campuses to benefit from the foreign language classes.

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