Article by Mason Brown, Staff Writer, VCU Commonwealth Times

For some VCU police officers, breaking language barriers is all in a day's work.

Ten members of the VCU Police Department are taking a conversational Spanish-speaking course that aims to help them in their communication with the VCU area's Spanish-speaking residents. To view entire article click here:

Once again, the Office of Continuing Studies in the Division of Community Engagement will be offering conversational Spanish courses for faculty and staff. To register, click here then type "Spanish" in the Keyword box.

For questions, please contact Anna Jones at ajones47@vcu.edu or 828-8831

Anita Nadal, Spanish Community Liaison with the Division of Community Engagement, was awarded the 2009 Napoleon L. Peoples award on Sunday, April 19 in VCU's Student Commons for her contributions to the VCU and Richmond communities in the area of language and cultural diversity.

¿Dónde está el fuego? (Where’s the fire?)

VCU Office of Continuing Studies helps the City of Richmond’s Department of Fire & Emergency Services interact with a diversifying population

Mike Porter
VCU Communications and Public Relations
(804) 828-7037
mrporter@vcu.edu
1/27/2009

It was the Saturday after Christmas and Anita Nadal stopped by her office at VCU to take care of some projects she couldn’t finish before the start of the winter break.

The silence of the nearly empty campus was pierced suddenly by the wail of a siren. Nadal spotted a Richmond fire truck racing down Franklin Street on its way to an emergency.

“And just like that, it struck me. The Richmond Fire Department can benefit from Spanish and cultural classes,“ Nadal said.

Nadal, an instructor of Spanish and Spanish Instruction Community Liaison, has been teaching courses in language and cultural competence to VCU faculty and staff and to people in businesses, medical practices and government agencies in the Richmond/Petersburg area since the fall of 2006. The program is coordinated through the Office of Continuing Studies in VCU's Division of Community Engagement and is a partnership with VCU's School of World Studies.

“I’ve found that people in the community are open to this kind of training because they have customers or clients coming into their business or clinic or agency and they want to offer the best customer service possible.” Nadal said. “A language barrier prevents them from doing that.”

As the fire truck continued down Franklin Street, Nadal entered her office and tracked down an e-mail address for Chief Robert A. Creecy. She asked him whether the department would be interested in language and cultural training for its employees. Within five minutes, the chief called her to find out more.

“He said we need this. We’ve been thinking about this,” Nadal said.

U.S. Census Bureau population statistics explain why. According to the census, Richmond’s Latino population increased 167 percent between 1990 and 2000, and population estimates since 2000 indicate that trend continues.

“We are increasingly recognizing and accepting and celebrating our diversity,” Nadal said. “Richmond has responded as active participants to the diversity that’s taking place.”

Richmond’s changing demographics are no surprise to the Department of Fire & Emergency Services, which, in addition to fighting fires, serves as the “first responder” for medical emergencies in the city. Increasingly, arriving crews encounter children serving as interpreters or find no English speakers at all.

Deputy Chief of Operations Ron Wakeham recalled the challenge of not finding an English speaker during a recent medical emergency response.

“When we got the call, we went to the address but we couldn’t find a patient, and we couldn’t communicate with anyone at the scene. We quickly determined the person was outside of the house and were able to begin treatment immediately, but it reinforces the point that communication is key in a medical emergency,” Wakeham said.

Creecy put Wakeham in charge of working with Nadal to coordinate a training program for the department. After five years with an Iowa Fire Department that served a large Hispanic population, Wakeham understands the need to break through language barriers fast.

“The quicker we know what’s wrong with someone, the quicker we can help them,” Wakeham said.

A safety officer and 42 members of the department’s staff from three companies that serve sections of the city with the highest concentrations of Hispanic residents will participate in the first group of classes. Wakeham hopes that ultimately all 429 members of the department will go through the training.

The first two-hour class was held on Jan. 26 and sessions will continue over the next seven weeks.

Nadal says the classes are learning new vocabulary through repetition and role-play. She has customized the department’s program to include phrases that are important in an emergency. Each participant also will get a pocket-sized book of phrases to carry with them.

“This is going to be very engaging and interactive for them,” Nadal said. “They will be actively learning the whole time.”

For more information about language and cultural competence training, contact Nadal at nadalaa@vcu.edu or call 804-827-3405.

Link to the VCUNews Article online: http://www.news.vcu.edu/vcu_view/pages.aspx?nid=2765

Introduction to Conversational Spanish I, II and III and Spanish for Health Care Providers I, II and III will be offered this semester for faculty and staff from the week of August 20, through the week of December 15th. To register, visit http://www.pubinfo.vcu.edu/training/it/ and enter the keyword "Spanish." Tuition Waivers or Tuition Assistance may be used by those who qualify. Tuition assistance programs may not be applied to the tuition for these courses if the participant is already using the maximum allowable assistance within the current semester. Participants should check with their department or office to determine eligibility.

For more information, or to be placed on the mailing list, contact Anna Jones at ajones47@vcu.edu or 828-8831.

This semester’s Introduction to Conversational Spanish I, II and III classes for faculty and staff begin the week of Jan. 28. To register, visit http://www.pubinfo.vcu.edu/training/ and enter the keyword "Spanish." There is no financial responsibility for participants who are eligible for educational assistance or a tuition waiver. Participants should verify their eligibility with their department before registering. For more information, contact Anna Jones at ajones47@vcu.edu or 828-8831.

Conversational Spanish for Faculty and Staff classes begin the week of Sept 4. Register now at http://www.pubinfo.vcu.edu/training/it/ and enter the keyword "Spanish."
For more information, contact Edward Howard in the Division of Community Engagement at eahoward@vcu.edu or 828-8819.