by Libby Thornton
Tertulia, or Spanish coffee hour, is a club that meets every two weeks and is open to anyone wanting to engage more with the Spanish language through listening and speaking.
“Tertulia was something I did as a graduate student at Purdue University,” said Dr. Kelley Suero, an associate professor of Spanish and the host of Tertulia. “We had German Tertulia, Spanish Tertulia, all the languages being taught at Purdue.
“I love being able to practice Spanish in a no stakes situation.”
Suero believes that in lower-level Spanish classes, there is not much opportunity or time for practical conversations to happen in Spanish.
When she came to Troy in 2014 and saw there was no Tertulia within her department she set out to start one.
“I believe there has only been one semester since 2014 where we did not meet and that was Spring of 2020 because of the pandemic,” Suero said. “The idea of sharing snacks and drinks at that time was not something very comfortable.”
But, since 2020, the meetings have continued as they had before with global and domestic snacks and caffeinated drinks available to students to enjoy while conversing.
“Attending Tertulia has been beneficial for my Spanish skills because I am able to listen to the conversations of people with a higher level of Spanish, which overtime has really helped with comprehension,” said Belle Myrick, a sophomore accounting major with a minor in Spanish from Fairhope, Alabama.
Suero and Myrick also both noted that learning a second language, specifically Spanish, can be very beneficial in creating more opportunities in the workforce, traveling abroad and more.
“Learning a language makes you smarter,” Suero said. “Studies show that learning another language can stave off Alzheimer’s disease.
“It also produces critical thinking and problem-solving skills that can be used in any facet of life.”
“For someone learning a new language, I would say that knowing all the rules isn't as important as listening to real people,” said Emma Ellis, a sophomore double majoring in broadcast journalism and Spanish from North Augusta, South Carolina. “You can know all the rules, but if you don’t understand dialects and colloquialisms, it isn’t going to be helpful.”
Tertulia will have its last meeting of the semester on May 2 in Wright Hall room 212G from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m., and any students with an interest in Spanish are welcome to attend.
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