Casa Latina: Davenport University launching bilingual program

Madalyn Buursma
·2 min read

CALEDONIA TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WOOD) — Davenport University on Tuesday announced Casa Latina, a new bilingual program that will teach students in English and Spanish.

Casa Latina offers 12 online undergraduate and graduate programs. The classes will switch off languages every other week.

“Casa Latina … aims to increase the number of Latinos in higher ed,” the program’s Executive Director Carlos Sanchez said. “Right now, of the half a million of Latinos in in Michigan, about 2% of us have a college degree.”

He noted that anyone who speaks both Spanish and English can join the program, like students who aren’t Latino but who went through an immersion program growing up.

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Sanchez said the program adapts to the way students learn rather than asking them to adapt to the way things are taught.

“The future of higher ed will be adapting to what the student does,” he said. “The Latino population is growing, so the future would be more offerings that are targeting that are targeted to the Latino community.”

Davenport University President Richard J. Pappas, Ed.D., told News 8 Casa Latina is a “game changer” for the school.

“This has been a huge effort on our part to serve people of color, especially the Latino population — fastest growing, but least represented in higher education,” he said. “It’s an opportunity for us for us to change what has been lacking for them to come.”

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Sanchez said while developing the program, he heard a good response from the Latino community and from corporations. School leaders hope the program will help address the talent gap by bringing more students into higher education programs.

“This initiative is a significant milestone, not only for Davenport University, but also for our entire community. Casa Latina optimizes our shared commitment to maximizing the economic potential of new Americans in our community,” Omar Cuevas, the senior vice president of investor relations for the Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce, said during the announcement. “Davenport has been a welcoming place for Latinos, but now they’ve created a bigger casa: A place of belonging.”

The first Casa Latina classes will start this fall. For more information, go to davenport.edu.

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