Apply now for Fall 2021! CED 497 Community-engaged Learning with PA Farmworkers

Have you ever wondered about the lives of the immigrant workers who harvest your food? Are you interested in community engagement with immigrants living right here in the State College area? Does your future career involve working with or managing Spanish speakers?

This two-credit course gives you the opportunity to learn first-hand about immigration, local agriculture, and labor issues through a language partnership with Spanish-speaking immigrant farmworkers on a local dairy farm. Every week you will visit immigrant farmworkers (virtually or in-person) to provide tailored English-language tutoring that contributes to better communication in their personal lives and on the farm. We will also meet every week in the classroom to engage in readings and discussion on issues such as immigration policy, immigrant social integration, labor issues in agriculture, the economic crisis in the U.S. dairy industry, and developing your pedagogy. By the end of the course you will achieve a deeper understanding of the transnational dimensions of Pennsylvania agriculture, awareness of the lives and experiences of immigrant farmworkers, intercultural sensitivity and awareness, improved skills to communicate and work with Spanish-speaking farm personnel, and stronger teaching skills.

This course offers an opportunity to practice Spanish with native speakers from Latin America, but Spanish language skills are not required to participate. The course meets every Wednesday from 11 am to 1 pm and you must be available at this time to take the course. Deadline to apply is May 30, 2021 at CED 497 Application. Contact Kathy Sexsmith (kjs95@psu.edu) or Adrian Barragan (axb779@psu.edu) with questions.