URGENT! SPEAK UP TO SAVE OUR PROGRAMS!

[Megan Brady]

Hello everyone,

There are TWO urgent needs right now, please read the emails below from our Advocacy Chair, Lesley Chapman:

ONE:

I learned early this morning that OSU is cutting its world language ed programs, both bachelors and masters. This was the last program in the state where you could get a degree in WL education. This is a direct result of Senate BIll 1 whose intent is to reduce "less popular programs" (ie: humanities) at universities.

OSU is saying there is no feedback being accepted and the decision will not change. (If you recall, in the fall it was BGSU who closed their programs. UC closed a while ago, and Miami is in the process of closing, etc etc etc).

Our goal now is to let the ODEW understand the importance of a World Language education for the workforce/ industry. They are collecting data to see what should remain a priority in our public schools, and what could be considered less of a priority. (This sounds very much like the affects of House Bill 1 are coming down to the k-12 level.)

There is a short survey you can take to express the importance of language in Ohio industry. Please fill it out, they need to hear from everyone

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TWO:

Reps. Chuy Garcia (D-CA) and Adriano Espaillat (D-NY) are asking their House colleagues to sign onto a letter to the Appropriations Subcommittee requesting $1 billion in FY27 funding for Title III of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) and seeking to restore the Office of English Language Acquisitions (OELA) as a standalone office within the Department of Education. 

We need your help to get as many House members signed onto this letter by the deadline of this Thursday, March 26th. Please write to your House member and ask for their signature on this letter. 

Here is the link with the pre-written letter and it will go directly to your congressperson. You can add some personal details if you like!

Thank you!!

[Megan Brady]

Thank you! For Spanish and ASL only, correct?

On Wed, Mar 25, 2026 at 9:17 AM Kimberly Talentino <kimtal...@gmail.com> wrote:

Thank you for informing us. 

FYI:  Kent state still has its world language teacher program. 

Best,

Kim Talentino

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[Kimberly Talentino]

Thank you for informing us. 

FYI:  Kent state still has its world language teacher program. 

Best,

Kim Talentino

On Wed, Mar 25, 2026 at 9:08 AM Megan Brady <meganb...@gmail.com> wrote:

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[Kaleigh Baker]

Also when filling out the ODEW Survey...  At the very end of the survey is an open-ended question that asks, "How could the credentialing process be improved?" 

I would love for us to  to flood it with adding the Ohio Seal of Biliteracy as an industry recognized credential.

[Nicolette Miller]

Thank you for letting us know! This is terrible. I’m glad that Kent State still has its program but so sad that these other schools are closing their programs. 

Nicolette Miller
Academic Travel Advisor- Ohio
American Council for International Studies
 Mobile /  440-897-0787 / npmi...@gmail.com
“ Travel Changes Lives “

"Traveling - It leaves you speechless, then turns you into a storyteller"

   Ibn Battuta

To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ofla/cb130f40-feb4-4e5a-8a07-1af22fd0c2e7n%40googlegroups.com.

[Heather Kane]

I just talked to Kent State about this and their Master's in Spanish no longer exists either.  I don't know about the undergrad.  This makes me so sad!

Heather Kane

To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ofla/CA%2BFzB%2B6FsfCY69AQxN9ApLd-Ab-sYPwArMBbW6so%2BsC659U23w%40mail.gmail.com.

[Chism, Rebecca]

Hello, at Kent State, the Master’s degree in (language) is not a licensure granting program; however, there is still the MAT program (Master’s of Arts in Teaching) that remains open to language students who have their BA in the language. 

The current undergraduate program at Kent State has students major in the language and minor in education; we still have majors in Spanish and in American Sign Language. We hope to institute some modifications to our major so that we can still license in French, German, and Latin.

Keep the faith! Thanks! 

Rebecca L. Chism, Ph.D.

Associate Professor of 

Foreign Language Pedagogy

Modern and Classical Language Studies
Kent State University
Kent, OH 44242
rlc...@kent.edu
330-672-1825 (office)

To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ofla/CAK9KJkg8n5%3DSPH%2BnfvQeU6u0K1Dq4V_FbBubFUDznkLZW2Pk6g%40mail.gmail.com.

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[Teri Wiechart]

Let’s keep encouraging our students to take language in college no matter what they major in. 

Teri

Teri Wiechart

ADI Institute, Strasbourg, France 2026

OFLA President 2013-2014

Language Acquisition through Comprehensible Input Based Teaching - Trainer and Coach

To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ofla/C8531E7D-FBAB-4CE3-910D-C65C0446CE85%40kent.edu.

[sumor Moran]

Your message is not clear. In the first paragraph you said your Master’s in language is not a licensure program. Then in the second paragraph you mention a major in Spanish. But you talk about modifying your program so you can license in French, Latin, and German.  Why not a license in Spanish also?  What do you mean?

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From: 'Chism, Rebecca' via Ohio World Language Association <of...@googlegroups.com>
Sent: Wednesday, March 25, 2026 3:01:35 PM
To: Heather Kane <hrk...@polandschools.org>
Cc: Nicolette Miller <npmi...@gmail.com>; Kaleigh Baker <kaleigh....@gmail.com>; Ohio World Language Association <of...@googlegroups.com>
Subject: Re: EXT: Re: [OWLA Google Group] URGENT! SPEAK UP TO SAVE OUR PROGRAMS!

 

To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ofla/C8531E7D-FBAB-4CE3-910D-C65C0446CE85%40kent.edu.

[sco...@ohio.edu]

Hello! I want to speak up and say that we are still offering Spanish Ed at Ohio University! We need to join a different major category and we will now be a "concentration" major but our Spanish Education major still exists here! 

Contact me for details Anne Scott sco...@ohio.edu

[Chism, Rebecca]

I apologize for any lack of clarity on my part…I was responding to the message from Heather Kane who stated that the Master’s in Spanish no longer exists at Kent State…this is true, however, that Master’s program did not include licensure. The licensure option at the graduate level for all languages except ASL is the Master of Arts in Teaching, which is still an option. For undergraduate licensure, students major in the language and minor in education. French, German, and Latin majors have been cut; we are looking at restructuring them so we can continue to offer licensure. American Sign Language and Spanish majors are both intact; therefore, we are still able to license for those languages. If anyone has any questions, feel free to contact me directly at rlc...@kent.edu. Thanks. 

Rebecca L. Chism, Ph.D.

Associate Professor of 

Foreign Language Pedagogy

Modern and Classical Language Studies
Kent State University
Kent, OH 44242
rlc...@kent.edu
330-672-1825 (office)