CLI Alumnus Ashley Coogan Applies her Language Learning Achievements
There are many students who are achieving great success at Arizona State University, but Ashley Coogan is one of the Critical Language Institute’s stand-out students. When asking her about her experience learning both Polish and Ukrainian in their respective programs, she shared that the reason she chose Polish was due to her doctoral research being focused on the European Union. “Since Polish is an EU language, I thought it would be a really interesting opportunity to add to my repertoire since my linguistic background is in romance languages.”
She also began to share what interested her in learning the Ukrainian language. “I chose Ukrainian for a bit more of a serendipitous reason. There was no Polish 2 class available in Tempe.” She continued, “To retain my funding, I chose Ukrainian because Ukrainian has such a large lexical overlap with Polish. I also thought, due to the timing of the Russian invasion, I thought the most diplomatic thing I could do was to familiarize myself with this language and culture.”
Ashley is currently pursuing her 5th year of the Applied Linguistics PhD program at ASU. “I specifically focus on Catalonia and Spain. I speak Spanish, French, and Catalan. I have always loved learning languages and had the opportunity to live and work abroad in France for a year. I was able to experience what it was like experiencing or being a language.” She showcased how much she noticed herself change with not only speaking another language but also being placed in a different environment. “I became fascinated with the role this plays in overall social cohesion - especially in a transnational situation like the EU.”
In her view, being admitted into the Critical Languages Institute program was a game-changer in her career path. “Not only has CLI helped me stay focused on learning during the summer terms, but it has really underscored the importance of cultural curiosity and cultural competence. It’s such an important part of the human experience.” She continues, “The positive reinforcement from my experience in these programs has really energized the way I work within my own degree and towards graduation.” Destined to work for the government, Ashley states that learning those specific languages has increased her marketability substantially, and has opened her perception in ways like never before.
Written by: Victor Johnson ~ 2024