Department of Modern Languages and Classics Volume 5 Issue 1 2013 C OLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES FOUR MLC STUDENTS AWARDED TWO PROFESSORS RECEIVE EXTERNAL GRANTS FULBRIGHT SCHOLARSHIPS During the summer of 2012, Dr. Karina Four MLC students were awarded Ful- Vázquez spent a month doing research at the bright scholarships to teach and study archives and museum of the legendary film abroad in 2013-14. Carolyn Bero and studios Luminton, located in Buenos Aires, Rachel Hunkler, both Spanish majors, will Argentina. is was part of her participation assist English teachers in Spain. In addition in the interdisciplinary project “María’s Faces: to their teaching duties, they will carry out Images and Representations of Domestic independent research projects in Spain. Paid Labor in 20th-Century Argentina.” Stephanie Richerson, a German major, e research group is formed by research- also received a Fulbright but declined it in ers from Argentina, England, and the USA. order to accept a position teaching English In April 2012 the project was awarded a in China. Parker White, a Classics major, $17,000 grant by the Argentina National Karina Vázquez also declined his Fulbright in order to take Council for Science and Technology (CONI- a position with the Peace Corps. CET) for a three year period. Dr. Vázquez has generated two forthcoming articles in the United States and England, and has work in progress on Manuel Romero’s first films. Dr. Vázquez´s focus is on the representations of paid domestic labor, and its relationship with other paid labor, in Argentine narrative and cinema for three specific periods in socio-po- litical history: the 1940s and 1950s, the last dictatorship (1976-1983) and its aftermath, and the period opened by the social crisis of December 2001. Metka Zupančič During the summer of 2012, Dr. Metka Carolyn Bero Zupančič spent three months conducting research with colleagues at the De- partment of Translation and Interpretation at the University of Ljubljana, in her country of origin, Slovenia. e grant in the amount of 18,000€ (the equivalent of $24,000) came from the Agency of Research of the Republic of Slovenia. Re- search topics included translations of Slovene literature into English, translation of Québécois literature into Slovene and translation of author Claude Simon into Slovene. After three public lectures at the Universities of Ljubljana and Maribor, in Spring 2012, the project continued in Spring 2013, with two public lectures by Dr. Zupančič at the Universities of Ljubljana and Koper, Slovenia. A joint presentation, with Dr. Mojca Schlamberger-Brezar, during the prestigious Séminaire Claude Si- mon in Paris, on June 1, 2013, generated an initial article for Cahiers Claude Simon, with possibilities for further developments in additional articles to follow. F Rachel Hunkler NOTE FROM THE CHAIR EXCELLENCE IN TEACHING e 2012-13 academic Associate Professor of Spanish William Worden was given the year was an excellent 2013 “Outstanding Foreign Language Teacher Award Post- one for the Depart- Secondary” by the Alabama Association of Foreign Language ment of Modern Lan- Teachers (AAFLT). Professor Worden began at the UA in guages and Classics. 2002, after receiving his PhD in Hispanic Studies from Brown Our faculty members University. He served for several years as the MLC Director published a book of Graduate Studies and is currently the Spanish Language and received external Program Director. funding, and a profes- He has published on sor was selected best topics ranging from the Alabama teacher. Two prose of Cervantes to professors received the picaresque novel to tenure and promotion, colonial theater in Cuba. and we bid farewell to “Staying in the Target Professor O. Kimball Language While Teaching omas C. Fox, Chair Armayor after 35 Middle School and High years of service. Our School,” his 2011 talk students won a top UA Premier Award, the UA Outstanding given at the AAFLT Teaching by a Graduate Student award, and numerous national Conference, was voted awards including ones from Fulbright, the National Security “Best of Alabama” for William Worden Education Program (Boren Awards), and the State Depart- the conference and has ment. Our graduate students organized a very successful third since been published in annual conference. e department added three new smart Dimension, the journal of the Southern Conference on Language classrooms and renovated a large room in the former Biology Teaching. Another essay, titled “Helping Undergraduates Make building for GTA offices. We hosted French, German, and Connections to Don Quixote” will appear in a volume titled Spanish Language Days, which together brought approximately Approaches to Teaching ‘Don Quixote’ to be published by the 1500 high school students and their teachers to campus for a Modern Language Association. Five of Professor Worden’s day of competitions and activities in the target language. We six dissertation advisees have gone on to teach in Alabama; continued our service-learning activities, locally through Spanish they include: Vicky McCrary, Spanish Teacher at Tanner Outreach and internationally with a trip to Ecuador. Departmen- High School, Tanner, AL; Andy Milstead, Spanish Instructor, tal faculty administer the semester-long Alabama-in-Cuba pro- Samford University; Eduardo Pacheco, Assistant Professor of gram and, in the summers of 2012 and 2013, also led students to Spanish, Jacksonville State University; Jesús Rodríguez, S.J., China, France, Greece, Italy, Japan, Germany, and Spain. I invite Associate Professor of Spanish, Spring Hill College (currently you to read more about these and other activities in the following on assignment in the Vatican); Rosie Stoops, Associate pages of Polyglot. F Professor of Spanish and French, University of Montevallo. F SCHOLARSHIP AND SUPPORT FUNDS IN MLC Classics German Selby Hanssen Memorial Endowed Scholarship Bell-Spicer Scholarship Fund Lelia Harris Lang Endowed Scholarship Fund Barbara Fischer Memorial Endowed Scholarship Charles D. Perry Endowed Scholarship Mercedes-Benz US International Scholarship Fund French Russian James Lamar McCann French Scholarship Fund e Russian Fund Francophile Endowed Support Fund Spanish Spanish Program Endowed Support Fund George Griffin Brownell, Sr. Romance Language Fund 2 POLYGLOT FACULTY HIGHLIGHTS FACULTY e University tenured Jean Luc Sarah Moody served on an NEH se- Several faculty members pub- Robin (French) and Ignacio Rodeño lection committee and Erin O’Rourke lished multiple refereed articles or (Spanish) and promoted both to served on an NSF selection com- book chapters, including: Isabelle Associate professor. mittee. Ignacio Rodeno served as Drewelow (3), Elaine Martin (2), President of the Alabama chapter of Jean Luc Robin (3), Michael Schnepf the American Association of Teachers (2), Karina Vázquez (3), Metka of Spanish and Portuguese. Karina Zupančič (1 and a book). Vázquez was elected as First Vice- President. Douglas Lightfoot served MLC Faculty led study abroad pro- as President of the Alabama chapter of grams in summer 2012 to China the American Association of Teachers (Xiang Zhang), France (Michael of German. Elaine Martin served on Picone), Germany (Rasma Lazda), the Advisory Board for the Southern Greece (Tatiana Summers), Italy Comparative Literature Association. (Lidia Cicone), Japan (Koji Arizumi) Gabriella Merriman served as a read- and Spain (José Cano). er for the College Board AP Test in Jean Luc Robin Italian and was appointed by the Col- Karina Vázquez took part in the lege Board to help develop the SAT Honors College Action Abroad: subject test in Italian. community service in Ecuador. Michael Schnepf had a sabbatical MLC hosted high school language leave in fall 2012 and served as Direc- days in French (Drewelow), Ger- tor, Alabama-in-Cuba spring 2013. man (Lazda) and Spanish (Moody/ Metka Zupančič had sabbatical leave O’Rourke), bringing approximately in spring 2013. 1500 prospective students to campus. Ignacio Rodeño Les écrivaines contemporaines et les mythes. Le remembrement au féminin. Paris: Karthala, 2013. is volume in French, by Dr. Metka Zupančič, is a collection of fourteen essays dealing with the notion of “rememberment” of myths in contemporary French and Francophone literature by women writers. Ten authors are studied and placed in the context of contemporary trends, be it in Canada (Québec and Ontario), France, Belgium or Tunisia. e rewritings of some key femi- nine myths, mainly from the Mediterranean tradition, such as those of Demeter, Persephone, Ariadne, Mary Magdalene, and quite strongly a new Eurydice, contribute to self-awareness and empowerment through the new paradigms that are to be found in novels studied by Dr. Zupančič. A special event around this book, organized by the Slovene Embassy in Paris and moderated by Dr. Zupančič, was held on June 4, 2013, at the French Writers’ Society (SDGL) in Paris, with the participation of scholars and writers from Belgium, the USA, and Canada. F FACULTY BOOK FACULTY Fall 2013 3 Kelcey Armstrong (BA in nati, Ohio, though Ashley French and International herself works out of Izmir, Studies, 2012) currently Turke y. works in Lodz, Poland, as a Marketing Administra- Brett Johnson majored in tive Assistant at Aquafilter Classics and English while Europe Ltd. After she at UA, and then earned an graduated from the Univer- MS in Bioscience Regulato- sity of Alabama, where she ry Affairs at Johns Hopkins was involved in a number and a MPubHealth at of international venues, Georgetown, while at the she studied International same time earning a JD at Valarie Jones Allison (Hiss-)Ramey Strategic Marketing at the Georgetown Law School. University of Glasgow, He has since worked for Former German MA stu- where she obtained a Mas- the National Academy for dent Valarie Jones acquired ter of Science degree. Kelcey State Healthy Policy and a rewarding job at a For- also acquired a certificate in the US Dept. of Health tune 500 company dealing teaching English as a foreign and Human Services. He in labeling and packaging language, at the Trinity Col- is currently Assoc.