Student Testimonials

Malini Kundamal | Spanish Elementary II (Spring 2023):

Taking Elementary Spanish II last year was one of my favorite experiences in college because of how creatively the course was designed. This class also helped me become more confident in speaking Spanish and generally, a more active participant in other classes because of the many group interactions that were encouraged!

Kenneth Schultz | Spanish Elementary II (Spring 2022):

I haven’t studied Spanish in a few years, and was honestly scared to jump back into it (not to mention all the weird feelings and experiences that come with being estranged from your heritage and being the one who can’t speak the language at family gatherings, which has made the whole “learning Spanish” thing feel a lot more consequential and stressful as is). I’ve never felt more excited to continue learning and working towards fluency, and it has never felt like more of a realistic goal.

Briani Netzahuatl | Literature Humanities (2019-2020):

I have known Professor Almudena Marin-Cobos for almost four years, having first met her when she was my professor in Literature Humanities. Professor Marin-Cobos is a once-in-a-lifetime, phenomenal professor. I remember entering my first year at Columbia feeling extremely nervous, especially to take a course like Literature Humanities, after having had a bad experience in an English course my senior year of high school. After taking her course, I realized that I had nothing to be nervous about. From the start, Professor Marin-Cobos created an inclusive and supportive learning environment, encouraging students to think critically and thoughtfully about the texts we read. Not only did she facilitate discussions, but she employed different methods of engagement, from mind maps on the chalkboard to student-led presentations, all of which gave us the opportunity to dig deep into the texts and in our conversations with each other. She organized time outside of class and office hours to provide feedback on our essays, and also to check on us and our experiences in the course.

Even throughout the start of the pandemic and moving online, she remained committed to us as students and as individuals. Professor Marin-Cobos met us where we were at and exercised extreme understanding at a time when some professors weren’t—despite the unprecedented circumstances. She incorporated students’ feedback into her classes and was quick to adapt, but
nonetheless remained committed to our academic development. Overall, she made my first year at Columbia a special one, for a number of reasons. I entered her class struggling with intense imposter syndrome and timidity, and she encouraged me to have confidence in my abilities and thoughts. Furthermore, her intensive, critical, and interdisciplinary approach to our work inspired me to apply a similar lens in other courses I took at Columbia. Because of her guidance and nurturing, I eventually chose to specialize in decolonization, an idea that I have explored in both my majors. Professor Marin-Cobos motivated me to advocate for myself and apply the theories I
learned in class to the real world; she very much championed the application and practice of learning, urging us to engage with our own communities and those outside of Columbia.

Her commitment to inclusivity and growth fostered a learning environment that I still use as a standard for other classes I’ve taken at Columbia and Barnard. She wholeheartedly invested in my journey as a student, but also as an individual, which to me speaks volumes about her as an academic and a human being. My experience in her Literature Humanities class is one I look
back on with gratitude because it showed me that I could make thoughtful contributions, regardless of my background, and be celebrated for my efforts and my mind.

Grace E. Fox | Literature Humanities (Spring 2020):

I have learned so much in your class, and hope to implement the vigor, love, and dedication you express within your teaching into my future career opportunities. You have inspired me to use my education to shake this world– and to be the advocate and educator that the historically silenced deserve. […] Once again, thank you for your time and efforts on my behalf, and there are no words to express how grateful I am for your impact on my life.

Vielka R. Ebadan | Literature Humanities (Spring 2020):

I’m beginning my third year at CU and thinking about the past few years and wanted to reach out to Professors who I felt really shaped my first two years at University. I will never forget how you started our curriculum by placing Song of Solomon at the beginning of our syllabus and your inclusion of Andalusian poetry into our lessons; thank you for opening a part of my brain that allowed me to think critically, creatively, and enthusiastically about literature. Also, thank you for welcoming my chaos in class.

Anonymous Student | Literature Humanities (Fall 2019):

Thank you for being such a genuinely kind and fun professor! You sincerely care about us students and I’m really grateful to be in your LitHum section this year. Thank you for making me excited about literature again, and for valuing all our thoughts and opinions in the class. [Thank-a-Professor | Thank-a-Teaching Assistant]

Klarizsa Sarah Padilla | Elementary Spanish II (Summer 2018):

¡Gracias por esta noticia y por toda su ayuda este semestre! Me siento muy feliz y agradecida después de haber leído tu nota. Todo el semestre, querías lo mejor para nosotros y aprendí TANTO. Gracias a ti, profesora, logré mucha más confianza. Estoy en deuda contigo por enseñarme muchísimo y por creer en mí. ¡Eres una profesora fantástica!

Damian M. Jungermann | Elementary Spanish II (Summer 2018):

¡Hola! Muchas gracias por una clase maravillosa. Estoy tan agradecido de que fueras nuestro profesor. La clase fue un gran desafío. Me siento bien preparado para el 2102. Tuvimos nuestra primera clase el miércoles y sé que será difícil, pero me sentí más preparado que nadie en la clase. Espero que te haga sentir orgulloso. También espero verte en Casa Hispanica un jueves. Si no tengo otra clase durante esos momentos, quiero participar en el café y la conversación. Muchas gracias por la clase. ¡Espero estar en tu clase en la primavera de 2102! Entonces podremos tener más debates y espero que mi español sea mejor.

Spencer Dahl | Advanced Language Through Content (Fall 2016):

Disfruté mucho de la clase este semestre, especialmente nuestras discusiones, y si es posible me gustaría tomar otra clase contigo antes de que me gradué.

Faviana Fabiano | Intermediate Spanish I (Summer 2015):

To be honest, I’ve learned more in the past 6 weeks than in any other Spanish class I’ve taken. You are definitely the best language teacher I have ever had and I hope I can take a class with you again! Thank you for being generous and thank you for a great semester!

Lisa T. Chen | Intermediate Spanish I (Summer 2015):

Definitivamente continuaré estudiar español. Hoy en clase el profesor era impresionado porque nosotros, tus alumnos, ya sabíamos usar el subjuntivo. ¡Nos enseño muy bien! Echaré de menos tus clases.  ¡Gracias por todo!

Kyra Spence | Intermediate Spanish I (Spring 2015):

I just wanted to thank you so much for a great semester. I felt like a learned a lot of basic and necessary Spanish grammar and conversation skills, but more importantly, I really loved how you provoked advanced thinking in Spanish and the exploration of new ideas. I really loved the level of respect with which you treated us, and how you valued our ideas so much. Our conversations on things like communism, healthcare and the art of cinema were really eye opening, and it was completely because you allowed for us to make tons of mistakes while trying to express these complicated ideas. Because of that, I learned so much. I am so grateful that I had you as a teacher!

Chuqing Kang | Intermediate Spanish I (Spring 2015):

Thanks so much for your personalized message! I really appreciate it and everything you’ve done for us as a class this past semester. Even though you were hard on us about the little grammar and vocabulary details, I knew it was for our own good, and I found myself really learning and internalizing the Spanish grammar and vocab words really well, so thank you! You also made our class really fun 🙂

Marie Syku | Elementary Spanish I (Fall 2014):

Thank you so much for your comments and for an awesome semester! Your class has honestly been my favorite class– not only was it very fun, but I feel like I’ve learned so much Spanish in the process (now I can even somewhat understand what the Spanish commentators are saying during soccer matches!). I was scared at first since I didn’t know any Spanish coming into the course, but you are such a kind and amazing professor and you made the class very comfortable, helpful and enjoyable.  I’m very sad that you won’t be teaching Elementary 2 next semester ;( but I would love to be in another one of your classes in the future! Your class has been an absolute pleasure! Thank you so much for everything 🙂