Foreign Language

www.linnbenton.edu/foreign-language

This degree is intended for students planning on transferring to Oregon State University and majoring in Foreign Languages. For the 2017-2018 school year, Spanish is the only language available at LBCC for students wishing to pursue a foreign language degree. Transfer credit language classes earn four transfer credits each and emphasize speaking, reading, and writing, helping students to build proficiency. Students wishing to pursue an AS degree in foreign language other than Spanish may study that language through the LBCC/OSU Degree Partnership Program. The Degree Partnership Program (DPP) is an arrangement between LBCC and Oregon State that allows students to take classes at both institutions (see www.linnbenton.edu/degree-partnership for more information). Make an appointment to meet with an advisor in Foreign Language to learn more about your options with DPP. Make this appointment at least one term in advance of when you plan to take classes as a dually-enrolled student at OSU. If you are seeking financial aid, be sure to list both LBCC and OSU when you complete your FAFSA.

The Foreign Language department at LBCC also offers classes geared towards heritage speakers of Spanish.  Heritage speakers are students who grew up hearing and speaking Spanish, generally from their parents or grandparents.  However, they may have not reached the competence and literacy of natives speakers. Typically, heritage speakers have had little exposure to writing and reading in their heritage language, so these skills may need to be developed. Likewise, heritage speakers may function well in everyday, common interactions, but may struggle expressing themselves in more academic or formal setting.  Heritage speakers can complete our sequence for Heritage Speakers (SPN 214, 215, and 216) in lieu of the second-year Spanish sequence (SPN 201, 202, and 203), and this will fulfill their Bachelor of Arts foreign language requirement at OSU.  After transferring, heritage speakers have the opportunity to continue with 300- and 400-level heritage speakers classes (and a minor) through OSU’s Center for Latin@ Studies and Engagement.  For more information, contact Margarita Casas at casasm@linnbenton.edu.

Students intending to transfer to an institution other than Oregon State University should follow the degree requirements in this catalog for the Associate of Arts Oregon Transfer (AAOT).  It is important that you identify the institution that you plan to attend. An advisor in the foreign language department can help you select the classes at LBCC that will transfer to that institution. You may want to work with an advisor from the transfer institution as well.

LBCC also offers a wide variety of non-credit conversational foreign languages to meet community interests and the needs of local employers. Conversational foreign language classes are offered through community education centers in Albany, Corvallis and Lebanon. They include: beginning conversation classes in Arabic, Chinese, Japanese and Russian; beginning and intermediate classes in American Sign Language; and beginning, intermediate, and advanced conversation classes in French, German, Italian, and Spanish.