Can you spot the languages?

Chinese | English | French | German | Japanese | Korean | Portuguese | Spanish | Catalan

Celebrating the first day of fall, September 22, 2024. Happy Autumn Equinox!

Welcome New and Continuing Students to Fall Session Language Classes!

We kicked off some new classes in September, and there’s still plenty of opportunity to get into class in October.

Check out the website to see courses in session and courses coming up!

Tuesday, October 8th from 5:00-7:00pm

Join us to learn more about the school and our courses!

Josh Barmen

American Sign Language Instructor

Welcome Josh!

During his time working with adults with disability through OPWDD, Joshua was exposed to American Sign Language for the first time and was immediately intrigued and began to learn the language. For the last 10 years, Joshua has been immersed in the Deaf community in the Capital Region. He earned a Bachelors of Arts in Cultural Studies where he concentrated in Deaf Culture and American Sign Language. He worked as an Educational Interpreter and realized through that experience he had a knack for teaching. He obtained a Masters of Science in Special Education with a concentration in Deaf and Hard of Hearing Education. Currently a NYS Certified Teacher of the Deaf as well as post secondary ASL teacher for SUNY, Joshua’s love for ASL has impacted others. He has a natural ability to connect with students of all ages and is eager to share his love for ASL and the Deaf Culture with you.

Want to get to know more of our staff? You can browse languages and meet our teachers at https://crlcalbany.org/about/meet-our-staff/

International Day of Sign Languages, September 23

World Tourism Day, September 27

Teacher Feature

During Hispanic Heritage Month, we are highlighting several of our Spanish language instructors. Miriam Rogers began her career as a college language professor in her native Peru. Read her Q&A to find how her classes help local businesses and her favorite word in Spanish!

WHY DID YOU BECOME A LANGUAGE TEACHER?

Simple: the combination of what I know (Spanish) and the skills that I have. I help people learn a language and all the elements that it includes: culture, customs, history, and idiosyncrasies of Latin culture. As someone from a Spanish-speaking country and a member of the Latin community, I think all this is valuable to share with learners.

CAN YOU SHARE AN EXAMPLE OF HOW CRLC’S SPANISH LANGUAGE INSTRUCTION HAS HELPED A LOCAL BUSINESS OR ORGANIZATION?

Our Spanish course for health care workers provides the basics to help interact with Spanish speaking patients. It was rewarding to learn of a story in which two participants were able to use basic Spanish in their jobs to communicate with a patient who didn’t speak English. They managed to ask him the questions to find out what the medical issue was and helped him get to the hospital.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE SPANISH WORD?

“Al toque,” is a common colloquial expression in Peru and some South American countries. It means “immediately.” If you want to say, “Do it right away!” you say “¡Hazlo al toque!” Need to buy something immediately? Say, “Lo compro al toque.” I love it because it’s short and clear. You don’t need to explain anything extra. When you say something, followed by “al toque,” you mean right away!

Stay tuned for more features to come in October!

Tell us about your language journey and learn more about CRLC programs.

518-729-5407 | info@crlcalbany.org | crlcalbany.org

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