Lunch Lessons : College President Teaches Courtesy as a Second Language to Help Her Staff Communicate With Spanish Speakers

The professor stressed courtesy and helpfulness.

“When a Spanish-speaking person comes on campus, you need to make that person comfortable and show that you care,” she said. “The idea is to communicate.”

The students nodded their heads in agreement. A few minutes later, they spoke a few words of Spanish to show they had learned how to help Latinos who know little English.

“ Muy bien! Perfecto! “ came the response. Then, in English, she added, “You deserve medals.”

The professor, in this case, was unusual, and so was the class. Teaching the lunchtime gathering was Golden West College President Judith Valles, the only Latina to head an Orange County community college. And the students she was teaching were all employees of the college--clerks, secretaries and administrative aides who do not teach but who often come in contact with the growing numbers of Latinos on campus.

Valles, a former Spanish teacher, said she believed it important that “front-line” college workers be able to communicate bilingually, even if in only a few phrases. And so earlier this month she began teaching a free, basic Spanish course to employees who volunteered to give up an occasional lunch hour.

Those taking the course said they enjoyed the experience.

“I’ve never had any Spanish before,” said Jacqueline Judd, who works in the college’s Criminal Justice Training Center. “She (Valles) has a wonderful way of presenting things. She teaches very simple things, easy to understand, but things that can make (the Latinos on campus) feel comfortable.”

Added Rosemarie Kaston, who heads the college’s Transfer Outreach Program: “She’s fun, and she’s very descriptive. I’ve never had Spanish before, and I’m the dunce of the class.” But Kaston said that the noontime sessions had been enjoyable.

Last Wednesday, Valles completed the fifth and final one-hour session with the college’s classified, or non-teaching, employees. She praised the volunteers for sticking with the course and asked them questions to see how much Spanish they remembered.

“How do you tell someone that it is necessary to return tomorrow?” Valles asked.

A student responded: “ Necesita regresar manana .”

Valles smiled broadly. “ Muy bien !”

She then reminded the employees to give the Spanish-speaking visitors specific names of persons to see on campus and buildings to go to.

“If you have something, such as a paper for them, you can simply say ‘ esto ‘ (this),” she added. “Just hold it out and say, ‘ Esto, esto .’ ”

Valles’ class was somewhat a sign of the times. Schools at all levels in Orange County are reflecting increasing numbers of Spanish-speaking immigrants. Community colleges tend to have more students with limited English than do four-year colleges because the two-year institutions offer an array of vocational and self-help courses.

Golden West is still predominantly an Anglo college, with 65% of its students being Anglo. But 8.4% of the college’s enrollment is Latino--an increase of about 3% in the past decade. Valles said she expects many more Spanish-speaking students in the years ahead.

“I decided to teach this course because I thought I should practice what I preach,” Valles said in an interview after her class. “I talk about being sensitive to the new majority, and I talk about developing a campus climate that is warm and inviting.

“If community colleges don’t reach out to these people and make them feel welcome, we’re not going to be able to reach them.”

Valles took over as head of Golden West College in the fall of 1988. Before that, she had been executive vice president at San Bernardino Community College.

“I was born in San Bernardino,” she said. “My parents were from Mexico, and we spoke only Spanish in the home, but my father insisted that I go to a school where English was the predominant language. In those days, they had segregated schools (separating English- and Spanish-speakers), and my father was sort of a pioneer in wanting to break down that segregation.”

Valles said she also wants to break down barriers to education, as her father did. Latino students need help and encouragement, she said.

“Community colleges are the ideal entry level for them,” she said. “When they walk on campus, they often feel lost. So if that person that they meet does not appear friendly or warm, they may not come back.

“I believe that by turning people (at the college) on to the beauty of the (Spanish) language, I can turn them on to understanding. And I’m already seeing results.”