Language department faculty and students recently learned that Covenant College will not have German and Arabic classes in Fall 2023.
The decision was sudden but not entirely unexpected. These programs have slowly declined through the years, with the German major and minor no longer offered to new students and Arabic being reduced from seven to two semesters. Still, the final closures have sparked disappointment and debate.
Dr. Tom Neiles, professor of German, has built up the German program for the last twenty-two years and is struggling with its closure. “I simply love teaching and working with students,” he said.
Dr. Daphne Haddad, professor of Arabic, began teaching at Covenant in 1996 and started the Arabic program in 2007. Through the years, Haddad has tried to keep Arabic at Covenant alive. She expressed her sadness about the program’s closure. “I really am sorry to see it go,” she said.
However, students mainly take foreign languages at Covenant to fulfill their Core Language credit, which is two semesters of language to graduate, and their choice is usually Spanish or French.
These are the things that Dr. Collin Messer, Vice President of Academic Affairs, and his staff considered when making the decision to discontinue German and Arabic.
Messer and his staff were worried about the smaller sizes of the elementary German and Arabic classes, which makes them expensive for the college.
When Dr. Jiewon Beck, professor of French, left Covenant after the 2021-2022 year, the college was faced with the decision of whether to continue the French program. Messer said that they could not financially commit to hiring a new full-time French professor while also keeping German and Arabic.
Because the Spanish and French programs attract more students, the decision to close German and Arabic came down to the question of what languages would serve the greatest number of students and work best for the Core and as a major/minor.
“With our [college] enrollment being down, we couldn’t financially keep German and Arabic,” Messer said. “The more sustainable goal is stronger classes in Spanish and French.”
But faculty and students are asking: Are Spanish and French enough?
Faculty and students are concerned that closing German and Arabic is counterintuitive to the college’s success.
Heidi Hall ’22, who was a German tutor at Covenant last year and is currently enrolled in the college’s Master of Arts in Teaching program, said, “It seems like if we want the school to grow, we should be adding programs not shutting them down.”
Haddad also shares Hall’s doubts. Haddad worries that losing Arabic means Covenant will lose a special niche—something that attracts students. “I know of at least three students directly who told me that when they were trying to finalize their college decision what tipped the scales for Covenant was that we had Arabic,” Haddad said.
Several of Haddad’s Arabic students have spent a study abroad semester in Jordan or Morocco, and her graduates have used the language in various ways. Some are in long-term missions, some help Arab refugees and communities in the Middle East, some teach English as a second language, and some have careers in the military.
Though it has always been a small program, Haddad sees Arabic as impactful. Neiles feels the same about German.
“We are a liberal arts school. Language is key to the liberal arts,” Neiles said. “German is the most widely spoken native language in Europe.”
And for Neiles’ students, the loss of the German program may be significant. Brendan Lyster ’23, a German minor and the college’s German tutor, shared the concerns he has about the closures affecting student opportunities.
As a senior, Lyster will finish his studies, but he is concerned for students invested in the German and Arabic programs who will not be able to take the classes or have study abroad experiences because of the closures.
In his time at Covenant, Lyster was accepted into a German immersion program at Middlebury College in Vermont, spending seven weeks there in summer 2021. This past spring and summer, he studied German cultural studies in Heidelberg through American Junior Year.
“I wish the opportunities I had would be available to students,” Lyster said. “For those who are interested in this program, it’s really unfortunate.” Lyster’s concerns hit home for one particular student, freshman Patton Hickman. Hickman is passionate about the German language and is currently enrolled in elementary German.
“I would major in German if I could. I really enjoy the language. I think it sounds so cool, and it’s so beautiful,” Hickman said.
Hickman was planning to follow Lyster’s path: take advanced German classes at Covenant, apply to Middlebury, and study abroad in Heidelberg. He needs a second year of German to be competitive for these programs, but with the closures next year, this won’t be possible.
“I really don’t want German to end,” Hickman said. Then, he asked, “Is there anything I can do; anyone I can talk to?”
Hickman is not just concerned about his own plans. He also worries that Covenant is losing languages that are important to its Christian mission and cultural awareness. “German and Arabic allow for more diversity of learning than just offering Spanish and French,” he said.
Neiles feels the same: “It does not look good for a liberal arts college to be cutting foreign language programs. To be truthful, more than two semesters should be required for students and Chinese should be added to our selection.”
But as the college’s decision seems to be final, faculty and students find themselves at a crossroads.
These concerns are not going unheard by the administration. Messer and his staff are aware of the college’s decision, and Messer expressed his sadness over its impact.
“I, and Dr. Halvorson, deeply grieve the loss of these programs,” he said.
Messer expressed his gratitude and humility and praised the work of Neiles and Haddad. He also spoke of Covenant’s commitment to global literacy, “As a Christian college, the study of world languages and culture is vital to our mission.”
Messer’s goal is for Covenant to value foreign languages, while doing so economically given the college’s small size. The end of German and Arabic is not the end of language at Covenant. The administration plans to invest in the Spanish and French programs, serving students and building up the culture of the language department.
However, Messer admits he still finds the decision difficult.
“All of us every day are called to try to make wise decisions with incomplete information and in the midst of human limitations,” he said. “I hope we’re making the right decision, but I can’t say with complete certainty that we are.”