By Susan O'Rourke | December 10, 2021
Ychante-Huerta emphasizes that globally-infused courses help students challenge generalizations or stereotypes, appreciate the diversity and richness of other countries’ cultures, and be more open-minded.
This month we have the pleasure of celebrating the impressive work of Prof. Mariela Ychante-Huerta a Spanish instructor at Johnston Community College.
Ychante-Huerta has long-been committed to global learning experiences, as a student and as a professor. Her love of studying other cultures and languages blossomed as a college student in Mexico, where she majored in English and minored in Spanish and literature. Ychante-Huerta recalls that “from that moment, [she] started to realize how important it is to learn about other cultures, learn other languages, and build connections with others.” Ychante-Huerta also “received a scholarship from the British Council that sent [her] to study in Scotland and teach Spanish in a middle school” there. This “eye-opening” experience helped Ychante-Huerta discover the power of study abroad to build empathy, foster introspection, and create opportunities for students to reflect on their own identities. “Being connected to other people and cultures and seeing other parts of the world,” she relates, helps students “learn more about [their] culture, communities, and who [they] are.”
Ychante-Huerta continued her work abroad as a Fulbright Scholar and Foreign Language Teaching Assistant at Pitt Community College (PCC) here in North Carolina. Although she was in the process of earning her Master’s degree in Mexico, Ychante-Huerta decided to “stay at Pitt Community College” as an associate student and then went on to earn to her Master’s degree at East Carolina University. These experiences helped her learn more about the educational system in the United States.
During her time at Pitt Community College, Ychante-Huerta became involved with UNC World View as a Scholar of Global Distinction. This program was an integral part of her experience at PCC as she deepened her cultural competency as she studied abroad in Paris, France, took globally-intensive courses, and developed an informative capstone presentation.
Ychante-Huerta’s experience inspired her to bring the Scholar of Global Distinction Program to Johnston Community College (JCC), where she teaches Spanish. She appreciates that the Scholar of Global Distinction Program supports community colleges, specifically, as “community college students do not [always] get to experience” studying abroad and community college faculty do not always have access to the resources that larger colleges and universities do. UNC World View creates a vital partnership between community colleges and UNC. The program has helped professors from across the disciplines see how global perspectives can enrich their courses. Professors in the social and natural sciences, for example, can use globally-focused case studies in order to help their students think about the contemporary, real-world impact of their studies.
This program further supports Ychante-Huerta in her work to build students’ cultural curiosity and competency. Ychante-Huerta emphasizes that globally-infused courses help students challenge generalizations or stereotypes, appreciate the diversity and richness of other countries’ cultures, and be more open-minded. Globally-focused courses, she notes, also help students (especially those who might not get the opportunity to study abroad) recognize the diverse cultures that are a part of their community and see that global is local.
Ychante-Huerta has continued to join UNC World View programs and recently attended the Global Business in a New World Program. She appreciated the emphasis on affirming diversity “not only in the cultural sense but also… [by] giving equal opportunities to everyone [studying on] our campus [and] seeking help.” Ychante-Huerta agreed with the presenters that “soft skills are not soft,” and that cultural competency and respect are key in schools and in the workplace.
Ychante-Huerta encourages other faculty to build global learning into their classrooms based on her own experiences with “how enthusiastic, positive, and encouraging students are” about working on culturally-informed projects. Once faculty open the door to global learning, she explains, students’ curiosity and excitement for learning takes off.
We at UNC World View continue to be inspired by Prof. Ychante-Huerta’s leadership, creativity, and commitment to supporting her students and fellow faculty.