Danielle Lang has wasted no time in putting her passion and talent for teaching to good use. After completing her undergraduate degree in 2006, she traveled to the village of Carmen Pampa, Bolivia to teach agronomy.

“During that experience, I realized I had found something I loved and something that I wanted to do for my career,” Lang said.

Upon returning to the United States, Lang was accepted into the Hamline School of Education’s Teaching English as a Foreign Language certificate program and went on to pursue her Master of Arts in English as a Second Language degree as well.

Lang is now back in Bolivia to complete fieldwork for her master’s thesis on the topic of increasing the motivation of university students to learn English as a foreign language. At the same time, she is teaching at Unidad Académica Campesina-Carmen Pampa where young men and women in one of the poorest areas of South America can receive an education. The college is recognized by the United Nations as an award-winning model for the eradication of poverty. 

“Every day the students inspire and challenge me to grow as a person and a professional. The smiles they carry through their hardships and their dedication to education reminds me that teaching truly is a privilege,” Lang said. 

Lang is teaching English to students in the college’s ecotourism and education departments. She attributes her preparedness for teaching abroad to her Hamline education. 

“The Master of Arts in English as a Second Language program is stimulating, challenging, and provided me with a myriad of resources to carry with me,” Lang said. “These skills have allowed me to come full-circle and do what I love to do.”

Lang will soon return to Minnesota and finish her master's thesis. You can read all about Lang’s work in her blog.