Expanding access to African languages at the University of Chicago

Since 2015, the University of Chicago has taken part in CourseShare, a program that allows students to enroll in selected language courses offered at other institutions which in turn helps to fill in gaps in the curriculum. One of these gaps has been in the linguistic department where as of 2023 only one African language class was offered: Swahili. CourseShare provided one avenue to rectify this gap, however, the rapid increase in demand among students wishing to learn African languages remained unresolved. Enter Elijah Jenkins, the student body president and leader of the Undergraduate Student Government (USG) program, who has made it his goal to address this underrepresentation and expand access to African language studies at UChicago.

Since joining student government as a first-year, Jenkins explained that one of his earliest goals was to enhance UChicago’s African language curriculum. The project derives from Jenkins own identity as an African-American and Indigenous Chamoru (Pacific Islander) who went to a school in Arizona where very few black students attended during his time there. Jenkins describes this experience as one that led him to have “little idea of what it meant to be African.” When he arrived at UChicago as a first-generation student, he noticed that many of his other African-American and first-gen peers had similar dilemmas. This, paired with Jenkins’ own desire to learn the indigenous language of his family, led him to begin this initiative. 

The idea started to see life once Jenkins joined USG. It was there that he partnered with the Chicago Language Center (CLC) and UChicago’s CourseShare program and began working closely with CLC Director Catherine C. Baumann and CLC Director of Instructional Technology Nicholas Swinehart. In spring 2023, they conducted a survey to gauge student interest in studying African languages, and the results were staggering. The polls revealed that 150 out of the 178 respondents expressed serious interest in taking these courses if they were to be offered. Based on the overwhelming response, they were able to provide immediate opportunities for students to engage in African language coursework beginning in the fall of 2023. These new classes included foundational Yoruba, Akan and Wolof and were offered online with CourseShare through Midwest institutions such as University of Wisconsin-Madison and Indiana University.

CourseShare has been at UChicago since 2015, but it had been very minimally advertised, and only a few students had participated in it since then. Additionally, even when Jenkins and his partners were able to share the program with more people, there remained a few nonoptimal features. For one, due to its partnership with other schools, it operated on a semester system. This meant that a UChicago student who joined for a fall course would have to start over the summer. Additionally, it was geared more towards graduate students which made it less accessible to undergraduates. Lastly, there was the issue of its limited capacity, especially when compared to the demand shown in the survey. These factors ultimately led to Jenkins’ collaboration with CLC and Dean Nelson of the Humanities in order to advocate for a more sustainable and long-term solution.

This year, UChicago has made history by welcoming its first dedicated Igbo instructor, Inkky Olayiwole, whose position is funded by the Division of Humanities. Students now have the opportunity to take a full Igbo sequence remotely with hopes to bring the courses on-campus next year.

Current student in the new Igbo course, Chizara Daniel, shared that her identity as half-Igbo is what motivated her to join with the goal of being able to speak with her mother’s family in their native language. Daniel expressed her support and appreciation for the expansion of language offerings at UChicago, especially because of the growing African population on campus. This is particularly relevant when Daniel shared that “many of us [African students] were not taught our languages.”

Ezinne Mba, a second-generation Nigerian immigrant raised in rural America, furthered Daniel’s point saying how she “often felt a disconnect from [her] culture and home community” because she couldn’t speak Igbo. Therefore, Mba took this course in order to remove that barrier as well as to ensure that this endangered language “did not end with [her].”

Baumann noted that a couple years before Jenkins approached her, several students had also shared their interest in having more African language courses at the University. Upon seeing the survey results, it further solidified that this demand was consistently growing. She expressed that it “made sense seeing as our campus is becoming more diverse as well.” 

The introduction of the Igbo course has been a big step in the right direction of Jenkins’ goal to expand the African language curriculum. As with any new initiative, there are still a few kinks, such as the course’s current online offering. However, Igbo course student and USG Acting President, Ariana Ukaonu, says that despite these initial issues, the class is working well. 

When looking back, Jenkins shares that this progress has been a “testament of our power,” where students, first-gen or otherwise, are able to “have an impact no matter their background.” Perhaps, this will usher in a future with several on-campus African courses or even an African language department. Or, maybe another first-year USG member will begin an initiative to address the lack of Southeast Asian language course offerings next. Although the future is not crystal clear, Jenkins and his partners have already made huge strides. What is clear is what Jenkins claimed: “no matter your background, you can make an impact.”