May 28, 2015
For Immediate Release
 |
| Faculty, staff and graduates of the English as a Second Language came together in Campbellsville University Gosser Fine Art Center’s Gheens Recital Hall recently to celebrate the completion of the program. (Campbellsville University Photo by Drew Tucker) |
By Drew Tucker, communications assistant
CAMPBELLSVILLE, Ky. – “You are that diversity that makes us so strong,” Dr. Keith Spears, vice president for graduate and professional studies, said to students of Campbellsville University’s English as a Second Language (ESL) Program recently in The Gheens Recital Hall on campus.
“You now go away understanding English words, and words are very, very strong,” he said.
He told three stories. The first was about Mediterranean refugees traveling on a boat for 300 miles to get from Libya to Italy. He said the Coast Guard had reported more than 1,700 people had drowned trying to make that crossing.
 |
| Dr. Keith Spears, vice president for graduate and professional studies, tells the students they accepted the challenge of becoming a Christian servant leader. (Campbellsville University Photo by Drew Tucker) |
The second story was about the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth who came to Bardstown, Ky., in 1812 to teach and establish medical clinics. The third was about a man Spears had met in Brazil who, through broken English, conveyed his joy for life.
Spears asked what the three stories have in common.
“Each of them went out seeking other people to help or to help them; individuals looking for commonality – the commonality you have found in learning another language,” he said.
“This language allows us to express ourselves and gives us the opportunity to share with one another,” he said. “It gives us a better understanding of what we do and what other people do. It gives us a common bond.”
He said the students now had a common bond and a uniqueness that no one else has, and with that uniqueness comes a challenge.
He said, “You have to ask yourselves, ‘What am I going to do with this new skill – this new level of understanding that I have?’”
The challenge, he said, is keeping the core values of Campbellsville University with them as servant leaders, which are: foster academic excellence through traditional and non-traditional programs, provide an environment conductive for student success, value diverse perspectives within a Christ-centered community and model servant leadership and effective stewardship.
“A servant leader is someone who looks to others to see how he or she can help them,” he said. “That is your challenge, and you have accepted that challenge.”
Tim Hooker, ESL Program director and instructor in ESL, said at the beginning of the program he would speak a lot of English words to the students, and they would say very few with little understanding of what he said.
“Now, you are able to speak many English words, read a newspaper and write letters,” he said.
He said that no man is an island, and the students’ success is partly because of the friends they have made and those who have encouraged them. He thanked the students’ parents, friends, the Center for International Education and the ESL faculty.
“Because of your investment, the students are completing this program today,” he said.
 |
| Tim Hooker, ESL program director and instructor, says the students have come so far since they began the program. (Campbellsville University Photo by Drew Tucker) |
Hooker, Maryann Matheny, ESL endorsement specialist and instructor in ESL and TESOL; Andrea Giordano, assistant director of ESL and instructor in ESL and TESOL, and Dennis Paiva, director of international education, presented he following students with Completion Certificates: Emeline Assamoi from Canada; Batsukh Baldansenge from Mongolia; Jose Luis Chcin Martinez from Venezuela; Sophie Veronique Cordier from France;
Hector Diaz Acasio from Venezuela; Bulganaa Erdene from Mongolia; Laure Marie Jaillard from France; Yanxiu Jin from China; Mayu Kishikawa from Japan; Hiroko Jurimoto from Japan;
Carlos Antonio Lasarte Godoy from Venezuela; Apichaya Manthong from Thailand; Mao Mitani from Japan; Shiho Murachi from Japan; Akihiro Nakashima from Japan; Hyukki Park from South Korea; Alejandra Perez Arrechedera from Venezuela;
Oceane Anne Marie Pichot from France; Kai Senoo from Japan; Adriana Jackeline Sulbaran Diaz from Venezuela; Mai Tawaraya from Japan; Monica Andreina Tovar De Sousa from Venezuela; Oleksandr Tretiakov from Ukraine; Fuma Ueno from Japan; Daichi Watase from Japan; and Qianqian Yuan from China.
Linda Waggener, marketing and media relations coordinator at CU, was hooded by Dr. Jihyun Nam, assistant professor of linguistics, and Dr. Frank Cheatham, senior vice president for academic affairs, earning her master’s degree in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages.
Dr. Matt Jones, ESL instructor, presented the award for Outstanding ESL Student to Hiroko Kurimoto of Japan.
Cheatham closed the service with a prayer.
Pictures from the event can be found on CU’s Flick page at https://flic.kr/s/aHskanRWJB.
Campbellsville University is a widely acclaimed Kentucky-based Christian university with more than 3,500 students offering 63 undergraduate options, 17 master’s degrees, five postgraduate areas and eight pre-professional programs. The website for complete information is campbellsville.edu.