Modern & Classical Languages at Valdosta State University

On Awards Ceremony Night, we proudly recognized students whose excellence in language study, cultural engagement, and academic achievement truly stands out. We are honored to celebrate the following award recipients:

🏆 MCL Outstanding Student – Sandra Walker Award
Devin Glass

🏆 Viki Soady Memorial Award
Lindsey Setzekorn

🏆 Excellence in the Study of the French Language and Francophone Cultures – French Major
Vincent Pair & Cassandra Griffith

🏆 Excellence in the Study of the French Language and Francophone Cultures – French Minor
Mariana Lipham

🏆 Excellence in the Study of Spanish Language and Hispanic Cultures – Spanish Major
Jermarcus Green

🏆 Excellence in the Study of Spanish Language and Hispanic Cultures – Spanish Minor
Sydney Wilson

🏆 Excellence in the Master of Arts in Teaching in World Languages (ESOL) Program
Sergio Brown & Hye-Min Kang

🏆 Excellence in the Master of Arts in Teaching in World Languages Program – Spanish
Mattie Byous

Congratulations to all of our award recipients for their dedication and outstanding accomplishments.

🎉 Celebrating Dedication and Excellence 🎉

The Department of Modern & Classical Languages at Valdosta State University proudly recognizes the outstanding service and commitment of our faculty:

🏅 Dr. Luis Bejarano – 25 years of service
🏅 Dr. Ransom Gladwin – 20 years of service
🏅 Dr. Victoria Russell – 15 years of service
🏅 Mrs. Lizabeth Heath – 5 years of service

Your dedication to teaching, mentorship, and the advancement of languages and cultures continues to shape our students and strengthen our academic community.

Thank you for your years of excellence and service! 👏

The VSU contingent at the National Conference on Undergraduate Research in Richmond, VA.

VSU has THE BEST experiential learning opportunities for students!

🎉 Celebrating Excellence at the Graduate Symposium! 🎉

We are proud to share that our graduate student Ty Maddox was recognized as a Runner-Up for Graduate Assistant of the Year—an outstanding achievement! 👏

The Graduate Symposium wrapped up an incredibly busy and successful week, showcasing the impressive work of our students.

📚 Oral Presentations (New Category – In Person & Online):

Vanessa Salazar Trujillo – In-person presentation
Ghislaine Abousse Mimbang – Online presentation
Mwinwel Somdah – Online presentation

🖼️ Poster Presentations:

In-person: Vanessa Salazar Trujillo, Sergio Brown, Chiquita Brown, Ty Maddox
Online: Lauren Mariah

We are incredibly proud of all of our presenters for representing MCL with professionalism, rigor, and excellence.

A heartfelt thank you to our faculty for their mentorship and dedication—your guidance continues to elevate our students and strengthen the impact of our programs. Special recognition goes to Dr. Kelly Davidson and Dr. Karen Acosta for their exceptional coordination and for bringing in a truly outstanding keynote speaker. Also, a big thank you to Dr. Russell for her outstanding mentorship and continued dedication to our students’ success.

🎉 Celebrating Excellence at the Graduate Symposium! 🎉

We are proud to share that our graduate student Ty Maddox was recognized as a Runner-Up for Graduate Assistant of the Year—an outstanding achievement! 👏

The Graduate Symposium wrapped up an incredibly busy and successful week, showcasing the impressive work of our students.

📚 Oral Presentations (New Category – In Person & Online):

Vanessa Salazar Trujillo – In-person presentation
Ghislaine Abousse Mimbang – Online presentation
Mwinwel Somdah – Online presentation

🖼️ Poster Presentations:

In-person: Vanessa Salazar Trujillo, Sergio Brown, Chiquita Brown, Ty Maddox
Online: Lauren Mariah

We are incredibly proud of all of our presenters for representing MCL with professionalism, rigor, and excellence.

A heartfelt thank you to our faculty for their mentorship and dedication—your guidance continues to elevate our students and strengthen the impact of our programs. Special recognition goes to Dr. Kelly Davidson and Dr. Karen Acosta for their exceptional coordination and for bringing in a truly outstanding keynote speaker.

A huge thank you to Dr. Diana Ruggiero from the University of Memphis for joining us as our Undergraduate Symposium keynote speaker! 🎓✨
Dr. Ruggiero’s expertise in World Languages for Specific Purposes (WLSP) sparked such meaningful dialogue across our campus. Beyond her inspiring presentation, what we loved most was her genuine connection with our students—challenging them to take their language skills into the professional world.
Our faculty and students left feeling energized and inspired. Thank you for an unforgettable visit, Dr. Ruggiero! 🌍🙌

Congratulations to all Modern & Classical Languages students who presented on the Undergraduate Research Poster Symposium! Thank you to Dr. Davidson, Dr. Parra, Mrs. Heath, Dr. Nikolova, Dr. Walczak, and Dr. Balaustre for their continued support of our Modern & Classical Languages students.

Special recognition to Dr. Davidson for her outstanding work in organizing such a successful event.

I am especially proud of my Spanish for Professionals students for their exceptional professionalism, preparation, and engagement.

👏 Please join us in congratulating Brittany Molton, an online Spanish for Professionals student, who earned third place in the Humanities category (College of Arts and Interdisciplinary Studies) for the Best Poster Competition—an outstanding achievement!

Big congratulations to Dr. Victoria Russell and our talented MAT students on an outstanding showing at the SCOLT conference! 🎓✨

We are so proud of Laura Black, Lina Peñuela-Rannazzisi, Sergio Brown, and Chiquita Brown for their highly successful research presentations.