College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Iowa State University

Leader of the department

Dawn Bratsch-Prince honored for her leadership of the Department of World Languages and Cultures.
Two, maybe three achievements - that's all anyone can expect to be remembered for.

At least that's what a speaker said at an American Council of Education Women's Leadership forum Dawn Bratsch-Prince attended last summer.

"The presenter said we shouldn't try to tackle too many things. Instead we should focus on the big projects," said Bratsch-Prince, professor and chair of the Department of World Languages and Cultures.

Bratsch-Prince is focused on the big project. And a university committee charged with selecting the recipient of the ISU Foundation Award for Departmental Leadership agreed by naming Bratsch-Prince for the honor. This comes a year after LAS selected her for a similar award.

In Bratsch-Prince's tenure as department chair, she points to two accomplishments that have stood out.

"The name change of the department is a huge achievement," she said, "because of what it means to faculty and staff."

Bratsch-Prince led the charge for the name change, which was changed from the traditional foreign languages and literatures monogram to the Department of World Languages and Cultures.

"World Languages and Cultures more accurately describes how this department has broadened the scope of what we do," Bratsch-Prince said. "Literature, narrowly defined, and languages aren't the only things the faculty teach in this department. By looking at the old name, however, that is the impression one gets.

"The new name gives us room to reposition ourselves and continue to build on our strengths. It will allow us to attract a broader student audience."

The new name will also allow the department to more effectively engage other units for collaborative efforts.

"It takes time to change a culture in a department," Bratsch-Prince said. "This is a step in that direction.

"I'm thankful we started a dialogue about this and other items years ago particularly in light of the budget cuts the University has sustained in recent years. This positions the department better for the years to come."

The name change is just one item that Bratsch-Prince could point to on her resume as an accomplishment as department chair. The other major success is the creation of the department's Languages and Cultures for the Professions (LCP) program. The program is directed by Mark Rectanus, professor of German, and Chad Gasta, assistant professor of Spanish, and supported by the rest of the department's faculty and staff.

The program integrates extensive training in languages and cultures for students in professional disciplines. The department has cooperative agreements with the Colleges of Business and Engineering.

While that conference speaker may have said to focus on only two, maybe three impact projects, Bratsch-Prince isn't prone to do that. New ideas to continue the department's growth are being developed.

Future plans include merging all the department's national language majors into a single major in world languages and cultures. An introductory course might be included, focusing on all aspects of language. Class work would end with a capstone course.

"We're still very much in the discussion phase but I do feel this would strengthen our department," she said.

She also believes the possibility of a graduate program holds endless opportunities. But don't expect it to be the same type of graduate study offered at other universities.

"When we interview candidates for our open faculty positions it's shocking to see how many universities prepare future teachers and scholars," she said. "It's frequently the same way they were training us when I was in graduate school 20 years ago."

Instead, Bratsch-Prince would like to develop a graduate program with ties to the department's growing strengths in professional communication and culture.

"Many institutions and businesses seek teachers and employees with proficiency in a second language and the professional communication and cultural expertise to go with it," she said. "Few graduate programs offer this type of training. We can fill this need, but I think we have to do it quickly to keep ahead of the curve."

But even Bratsch-Prince realizes her department can't be all things to all people.

"Every project won't be successful. Some risks won't pay off. But we have an outstanding group of faculty here with a range of expertise that you won't easily find in a more traditional foreign languages department. They are poised to make an impact," she said.