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Modern Languages and Literatures

The study of international languages and cultures has become increasingly essential in today's globally interdependent society. The study of modern languages helps facilitate cultural understanding and appreciation, as well as encourages a greater exchange of material and intellectual goods. 

Oswego's Department of Modern Languages and Literatures is one of the largest programs in the SUNY system. Our diverse department offers majors and minors in French, German, and Spanish and a Language and International Trade major. Supplemental language courses include Arabic, American Sign Language, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Italian and Portuguese. We also offer minors in French, German, and Latino/Latin American cultural studies.

Our mission statement aligns with SUNY Oswego's James A. Triandiflou Institute for Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Transformative Practice. Through the study of languages and cultures, our department offers intensive practices of intercultural competence where diverse perspectives are embraced in a fostering, thriving, and inclusive learning environment.

In our course design, teaching practices, extracurricular activities, and study abroad experiences we seek to promote engagement and belonging to further values of inclusivity and partnership. Some of our common pedagogical practices include inter-group dialogue to advance topics of diversity and social justice, thus creating an academic community where all individuals can flourish regardless of their gender, race, class, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or disability status. Faculty and students work in close collaboration to achieve such goals, which is a constitutive element of the Department of Modern Languages & Literatures at SUNY Oswego.

Practice Your Language Skills in Our Friendly Department Foyer

The Department of Modern Languages and Literatures common areas welcome students to converse in the language of their choice with fellow students and people from all over the world, relax, work on homework, or read a book.

Student Spotlight

Ethan Woldenberg

Ethan Woldenberg, a SUNY Oswego student, had a remarkable semester in Mexico at UDLAP near Puebla. He took classes with native Mexican students, significantly improving his Spanish skills, and gained a new perspective on the country's beauty through friendships, community service, and travel. His prior Spanish education at SUNY Oswego prepared him well for this experience.

Leilhana Abu-Sbaih

Leilhana Abu-Sbaih

Leilhana Abu-Sbaih, a student in SUNY Oswego's Modern Language Department, recently presented a successful poster titled "Abundance and Allusions: Cuba in Espejo" at the Fall Scholarly and Creative Activities Poster Symposium. Her work, stemming from the "The Caribbean in Colonial Times" course, delves into Greco-Roman allusions in the Cuban epic poem "Espejo de Paciencia" by Silvestre de Balboa. 

Madison Bernhardt

Madi Bernhardt

Madi Bernhardt, a Spanish and Adolescent Education major at SUNY Oswego, has been accepted to present a conference paper at the Middle Atlantic Council of Latin American Studies (MACLAS) at Colgate University on March 15, 2024. Collaborating with Professor Gonzalo Aguiar Malosetti, Madi focused her independent study research on the literary works of Uruguayan author Fernanda Trías. Specifically, she explored the dystopian landscapes in Trías's novels, "La azotea" and "Mugre rosa," delving into contemporary themes of family dynamics and the diminishing quality of human interactions in society.

Faculty Spotlight

Dr. Georgina Whittingham

The English translation of Hugo Salcedo's "Los hijos de la Malinche" by Carolyn Malloy and Georgina Whittingham

Dr. Gonzalo Aguiar Malosetti

Dr. Gonzalo Aguiar Malosetti served as the President of MACLAS (Middle Atlantic Council of Latin American Studies). Under his leadership, MACLAS organized its annual conference at Salisbury University, MD, on March 10-11, 2023. 

Dr. Roseli Rojo

Havana on Steam Power: Literature, the Railroad, and the City in Nineteenth-Century Cuba

Contact Us

245 Marano Campus Center
8 am - 4:30 pm

Phone: 315.312.2196
[email protected]