“Honored and excited” — that’s how Brenda Soto feels to teach a new Spanish immersion section of Principles of Management, BBM 201. It’s the first time Wilmington University is offering this core College of Business course in Spanish and the first time in the Online LIVE course format.
“If your first language is Spanish and you prefer to get the class in Spanish or you want to learn in Spanish, this is the right opportunity,” she says. “It’s an immersion program,” featuring instruction in Spanish with assignments, readings and student presentations in English.
If your first language is Spanish and you prefer to get the class in Spanish or you want to learn in Spanish, this is the right opportunity,”
– Brenda Soto
Soto — an adjunct instructor and former executive board member of the Delaware Hispanic Commission — grew up in Puerto Rico and worked internationally before founding her own cross-cultural consulting firm, Brenda Soto Associates, specializing in Spanish and English human resource services. She calls the new Spanish immersion format “a taste of the real world” and a chance for students to increase “global awareness and cultural intelligence to manage organizations.”
Within the WilmU organization, Guillermina Gonzalez, who holds a doctorate in business administration from the University, spent months reaching out to community members to assess their interests and determine how WilmU can serve their higher education needs. Information obtained from 11 focus groups and more than 50 participants helped shape the first bilingual pilot course.
“We have high hopes this is going to be one of many to come,” says Gonzalez, an assistant professor and assistant chair of undergraduate business programs. “It means a lot because I do believe in the potential of the Latino community as the fastest growing minority in the country, and I do believe this is the right time.”
So does Robin Weinstein, a College of Business director, a professor and the chair of human resource management studies. He holds a doctorate in education from the University.
“This is a way for Wilmington University to again demonstrate our commitment to student achievement,” Weinstein explains. “It’s really about building bridges to our various student populations and making sure they know they are heard, they are valued, and we want everyone to have a place at the table here.”
This is a way for Wilmington University to again demonstrate our commitment to student achievement,” – Robin Weinstein
Starting this fall, Soto looks forward to connecting with students in her native Spanish, advancing their language skills and encouraging them “to move out of their comfort zone.”
“We’re going to look at different perspectives,” she adds. “Even when we speak the same language, there are differences and different ways to manage people, and this is Principles of Management.”
¡Principios de Administración, BBM 201, ahora con nuevo formato de inmersión en Español! Las clases empiezan en el otoño de 2023, bloque II.
Learn more and register here: https://go.wilmu.edu/BBM201.