On Saturday, April 6th, a delegation of 12 members representing the Spanish language program at Princeton University convened alongside Spanish lecturers from other Ivy League institutions at Yale University in New Haven. This gathering, which drew approximately 45 educators from Princeton, Yale, Columbia, Barnard, Harvard, and Dartmouth, presented a unique opportunity to share experiences, discuss concerns, and establish long-term collaboration.

The event was originally conceived by Jorge Méndez Seijas, Director of the Spanish Language Program at Yale University, and Alberto Bruzos Moro, Director of the Spanish Language Program at Princeton. Planning for the gathering involved collaboration with language program directors from other participating universities throughout the academic year.

The gathering featured presentations highlighting the distinctive architectures and pedagogical innovations of each program. Additionally, working groups addressed pivotal topics in the field, including discussions on the present and future landscape of language education as a profession, the challenges and opportunities posed by Artificial Intelligence, ideas for navigating potentially controversial topics in the classroom, strategies for integrating language acquisition with cultural understanding within the curriculum, as well as approaches to assessment.

The success of this inaugural gathering has inspired a commitment to long-term collaboration. Among other plans, new “Encuentros” will be held biennially, rotating among participating universities.