Learning a foreign language is more important than ever

Despite our ubiquitous talk of globalization, cultural diversity, cultural awareness and multiculturalism in general, language learning in higher education is in steady decline. Early in 2019, the Modern Language Association reported the closing of 651 college foreign language programs in just three years. According to the MLA, this is an ongoing trend. Many point to the economic crisis in higher education as the culprit, but such cuts are clearly predicated on a mindset that deems languages expendable. Despite the promise to educate a more global citizenry, many university administrators promote what they consider to be more practical disciplines at the cost of the humanities, often specifically targeting language departments with cuts. This occurs with full knowledge that a true liberal arts education including languages yields not only a more adaptable workforce, but also a superior one.
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