Spanish ALums

I live in New Orleans, Louisiana, and am a Construction Supervisor with Habitat For Humanity. I’ve been with Habitat now for about 16 months (since October 2006) and am trying to do my part to help the city rebuild post-Katrina. My job basically entails teaching the volunteers we get everyday how to do anything from building walls for a house to putting up siding to building stairs. Along with teaching volunteers how to build a house I am responsible for all the administrative tasks that are involved (scheduling sub-contractors, ordering materials, taking care of special guests that come to site…things of that nature). 

There are a large number of immigrants here working in the city, helping to rebuild because there are jobs to be had and work to be done. A number of our subcontractors are Spanish speakers so I speak with them quite frequently in Spanish as their English is still developing.

If you are interested in finding out more about what Habitat is doing in New Orleans, you can go to this website: http://www.habitat-nola.org/

Through the graduate program in this department, I I had the opportunity to do a comparative analysis of the Spanish Peninsular and Latin American regions. I also studied abroad at La Universidad Complutense in Madrid, Spain. It was a life-changing experience for me! I developed a greater understanding of the diversity within the Hispanic culture and it also enhanced my knowledge of the Spanish language.

The instructors in this department are extremely supportive and prepare you for any career you decide to pursue. ISU prepared me to confidently pursue my career goals con ganas!

Nadia is currently the Managing Director for McGuireWoods Consulting Romania. She joined the McGuireWoods team in February 2007 to help open the firm’s newest office in Bucharest. With a unique combination of skills in diplomacy and international and media relations, Nadia focuses her practice primarily on business development, government relations and strategic communications.

Prior to joining MWC, Nadia served as First Secretary at the Embassy of Romania in Washington. In that capacity, she was responsible for promoting Romania’s policies and interests before the United States Senate; strengthening relations with American investors in Romania; and articulating the Romanian perspective on international security to various Washington think tanks.

Nadia is also an accomplished journalist having worked for two newspapers and as a correspondent for the Romanian National Television. She has written extensively on foreign policy related to the United States, Europe, the Middle East, and Latin America.

I am Stephanie Gurewitz, I’m 25 years old and from Chicago, Illinois. I attended Illinois State University from August of 2003 to May of 2007. I was a Spanish major and sociology minor. I spent my spring semester of 2006 in Madrid, Spain.  I lived with a host family there and had an incredible time. I connected well with my family, made new friends and had the opportunity to travel– which was my main reason for going- except for improving my Spanish, of course.  I was able to travel all over Spain, to Portugal, France, Italy, Greece and Egypt. I learned so much about not only myself, but the world as well.

Once I graduated I began working as a case manager for a foster care program. I worked for a non for profit Hispanic agency that was contracted through the government. I worked for DCFS, the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services for Hispanic clients. I used my Spanish every single day and could not have been happier to.  The job was extremely stressful, but rewarding.

After 2 years working as a social worker, I decided to take a break and travel for a while before beginning graduate school. I left in November of 2009 for 2 and a half months to travel South America. I bought a plane ticket, packed my back pack and planned nothing else. I went throughout Ecuador, Peru, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil and Bolivia. I traveled for 70 days and went to (and through) over 50 cities. It was an unbelievably rewarding experience and I would not have changed a single thing. The people I met were welcoming, helpful, generous and fun. My Spanish (although almost perfect!) continued to improve. I returned in late January and within a few days began the graduate program at Loyola University Chicago. I am in a full time program for 2 years. I will intern at another community agency that serves the Hispanic population and I also work at a bar. As we all know, social work plus students equals broke.
There is something about being able to travel and experience life from the rest of the world that gives you an incredible sense of appreciation for life. There are so many opportunities out there, so many people to meet and places to see. A year ago in March, I got a tattoo on my wrist which says lo que sea, “whatever will be”. It is unquestionably the best way to live.