Kelly Arispe is an Assistant Professor of Spanish in the Department of World Languages. She has been at Boise State for 2 years. Kelly teaches Spanish, Spanish Linguistics and Foreign Language Teaching Methods. Kelly’s research is Spanish Linguistics, namely Sociolinguistics and Second Language Acquisition. Kelly is also the new (incoming; Fall 2014) Faculty in Residence for the Arts and Sciences Residential College!
We asked Kelly some questions to get to know her more. Enjoy.
What is your favorite part of your current job? I love helping (scaffolding) my undergraduate students explore research interests that stem from content we explore in my classes. I’ve had the opportunity to work alongside several students through research assistantships, teaching internships and the Student Research Initiative and I enjoy helping them better understand the process of building and executing a research project. A couple students have pursued (and been accepted) to graduate schools in Bilingual Education and Hispanic Linguistics and it’s deeply gratifying to be a part of that process and support them in that.
On the other hand, I have really enjoyed teaching freshman. I am teaching a course in Advanced Conversation and Composition in Spanish and I have really enjoyed working with students who are new to BSU and helping them further develop their proficiency in the language and Hispanic cultures. This course is getting me even more excited to live amongst freshmen next year. Although, I know I have huge shoes to fill thanks to my colleague and friend, Dr. Michal Temkin-Martinez.
What do you like least about your job? I have grown to abhor my email inbox. Sometimes I just prefer to answer the extra lengthy ones on the phone. I have had to work at putting boundaries on when to answer emails because it can be all-consuming (as we all know).
Do you have a favorite job? This IS my favorite job. It may sound Pollyanna-ish, but I love what I do. Being a professor at BSU is a dream come true for me. It is a lot of work- especially as junior faculty- but I am in a department with a great team of colleagues and I am sincerely thankful to be here.
What are you most proud of? Being a mom. My son (almost 2 years old) is my favorite part of every day. He’s also my petri dish at the moment since my husband and I are raising him bilingually and I get to see first-hand what the language acquisition process is like from all angles for once. I love analyzing everything related to his comprehension, speech and social interaction and it has been a fun intellectual challenge to me personally. I am sure my students tire of all the anecdotes in class about my insights and challenges with raising him bilingually, but it’s pretty neat that my two jobs collide and I hope to model to my students the value of bilingualism in my personal life. I now understand why the iconic linguists did their original research on their children. The data is overflowing and it’s just fascinating to watch his bilingualism blossom.
What is your favorite vacation? I grew up vacationing in Sunriver, OR and I have to say that the business in my life at the moment necessitates a vacation where there is little more to do than be outside or read. Just recently my family and I went to Sunriver and it’s great that Boise is only 5.5 hours away. You can’t beat the beauty and an excuse to read a good book or go for a bike ride. It’s the dream vacation for me at this place in my life.
What is your favorite hobby or pastime? What about favorite books, song or movie? I love to run. I love to play and watch soccer and I love to sing. I used to be in choir in college and miss it deeply. My favorite song is “Si tu no estas” by Rosana- a Spanish singer. I heard it when I first lived in Spain and it sums up all of that nostalgic romanticism you have when you first live in a country that’s not your own. My favorite movie is Gone with the Wind. It’s a classic; admittedly I like the first half better than the second and it is a movie I watch every couple of years. I recently read “Caleb’s Crossing” by Geraldine Brooks and loved it. I absolutely love historical fiction. “Don Quijote” is my all-time favorite book in Spanish and that’s because I had an incredible professor who brought the book to life for me when I studied and lived in Spain. Salvador Gallego- he was a huge inspiration to me and is to this day.
What do you fear the most? A society devoid of integrity. Although, I should also add that I also fear monolingualism. English-only movements and attitudes of the like are a great disservice to our society and I fear that people do not fully understand the ramifications.
What would you like to do before your time ends? Travel. Top on the list right now are Machu Picchu, Maine and Prince Edward Island. I would also like to learn to play the guitar. I have a guitar and I’ve taken lessons here and there, but I am far from where I’d like to be.
What would people be surprised to know about you? I am really good at impersonating people. If I know you well, I probably can impersonate you.
Thank you, Kelly!