Historic signing formally establishes Kennesaw State's Center for Hispanic Studies

11/6/00 -Gonzalo Gomez Dacal, the director of the Office of Education at the Embassy of Spain, Washington, D.C., will be at Kennesaw State University Tuesday, Nov. 7, at 1:30 p.m., to sign a formal memorandum of understanding with KSU establishing the Center for Hispanic Studies.

Designated by the Spanish Embassy as a Spanish Language Resource Center, the Center for Hispanic Studies at KSU will promote the teaching and learning of Spanish, work to improve cultural preparation of classroom teachers, and promote understanding among cultures. In addition to providing resources for businesses and the community, the center will offer workshops to help classroom teachers better understand Hispanic students and parents. Part of the center's mission also is to form collaborative relationships and exchange programs with Latin American and Spanish universities.

To support these efforts, the Embassy of Spain will provide language instructors, as well as printed and multimedia materials. Although the Spanish government initiated the idea and will provide financial and human resources, the center is intended to promote the culture of all Spanish-speaking countries. The unit also has received global partnership grants from the Board of Regents.

KSU is the only institution of the University System of Georgia to be selected to house a Spanish Language Resource Center. Other centers are located at the University of Southern California, University of Houston, Florida International University, University of Montreal and Duke University.

Betty L. Siegel, president of Kennesaw State University will attend the signing ceremony. Other dignitaries in attendance will include: Ignacio Taboada, Honorary Consul General of Spain in Georgia, Teodoro Maus, Consul General of Mexico in Georgia, John Dowdy, Kennesaw City Council Member, Patrick Dawson, an attorney whose firm has made a $5000 donation to the center, Lynne McClendon, Executive Director of the Southern Conference on Language Teaching, and Elizabeth Webb, Foreign Language Consultant, Georgia Department of Education.