Au revoir advanced foreign languages
Amy Drow
Issue date: 5/9/05 Section: News
The foreign languages department was one of many programs to suffer a blow from recent budget cutbacks made by the district board. The cuts to these programs will save approximately $120,000 according to the reductions and cuts list. Those savings come from French instructor Alice Slaton's salary as well as from cutting six classes altogether.
German III and IV as well as French I, II, III and IV have been completely cut. Slaton was offered a part-time position teaching at Moorpark College, but has chosen to retire instead.
Language department chair Art Sanford said he hopes the French program will return soon, but believes it will be difficult to bring it back once it has been taken away.
"I never imagined that an entire language would be taken away, even temporarily. Had we been given the chance to look at our entire program and look at making cuts more equitably, we could have saved first and second semester French," Sanford said.
Spanish instructor Dr. Robert Arce believes the problem should be tackled now in order to bring it back.
"A restoration plan is important to increase enrollment in French. Having an enrollment of 25 to 30 students in the class would justify having the class," said Arce.
Sanford said that VC was the only place between Santa Barbara and Los Angeles that offered advanced German.
"A language program doesn't mean just offering Spanish. We live in a global society. Americans have a tendency to think that English should be spoken by the rest of the world. We restrict our understanding of other cultures and we limit our business perspectives," Spanish instructor Patricia Rush said.
Recently, Sanford was told that some money has been allotted for him to add two more language classes to the schedule. Due to the demand for Spanish, they will add another Spanish I class as well as a sign language class at the east campus.
"I don't think a new chancellor should come in and make cuts prior to having conducted a survey which we are paying $200,000 for. I think you should get to know the climate of a district before you unilaterally cut the programs," Rush said.
German III and IV as well as French I, II, III and IV have been completely cut. Slaton was offered a part-time position teaching at Moorpark College, but has chosen to retire instead.
Language department chair Art Sanford said he hopes the French program will return soon, but believes it will be difficult to bring it back once it has been taken away.
"I never imagined that an entire language would be taken away, even temporarily. Had we been given the chance to look at our entire program and look at making cuts more equitably, we could have saved first and second semester French," Sanford said.
Spanish instructor Dr. Robert Arce believes the problem should be tackled now in order to bring it back.
"A restoration plan is important to increase enrollment in French. Having an enrollment of 25 to 30 students in the class would justify having the class," said Arce.
Sanford said that VC was the only place between Santa Barbara and Los Angeles that offered advanced German.
"A language program doesn't mean just offering Spanish. We live in a global society. Americans have a tendency to think that English should be spoken by the rest of the world. We restrict our understanding of other cultures and we limit our business perspectives," Spanish instructor Patricia Rush said.
Recently, Sanford was told that some money has been allotted for him to add two more language classes to the schedule. Due to the demand for Spanish, they will add another Spanish I class as well as a sign language class at the east campus.
"I don't think a new chancellor should come in and make cuts prior to having conducted a survey which we are paying $200,000 for. I think you should get to know the climate of a district before you unilaterally cut the programs," Rush said.