Becoming fluent in a foreign language can be very beneficial to one’s career and travel experience, however many students cringe at the thought of completing their foreign language requirement. Marinelly Castillo-Zuniga, Spanish lecturer and Spanish club adviser, spends her summer encouraging students to learn her native language.

Becoming fluent in a foreign language can be very beneficial to one’s career and travel experience, however many students cringe at the thought of completing their foreign language requirement. Marinelly Castillo-Zuniga, Spanish lecturer and Spanish club adviser, spends her summer encouraging students to learn her native language.

Castillo-Zuniga, born in Barquisimeto, Venezuela, studied accounting as an undergraduate and had initially planned to pursue a master’s degree in business administration. After working for PricewaterhouseCoopers for seven years, she believed it was time to branch out and find better opportunities.

“Working in Venezuela for PricewaterhouseCoopers was a lot because it was a 24/7 job. I was tired of doing that. When one of my Columbian friends spoke with me about the possibilities in the United States and brought up the idea of teaching a foreign language, I began thinking maybe this is something that I would like to do because I taught accounting in Venezuela but I had never taught Spanish before,” she explained.

Taking a leap of faith, Castillo-Zuniga came to the United States to study English and received her M.A. in foreign languages at ISU. Subsequently, she began teaching a student success course at Valencia College in Florida. She added that although Florida is great for vacationing, “living there is another story.”

“When I was in Florida, since so many professors spoke Spanish, it was really hard to find a full-time employer and there was so much competition. I decided to move back because I was missing my friends here in Bloomington. 

“Also, I felt really safe in Bloomington because it’s a small town and if you want to enjoy yourself more you can travel to St. Louis or Chicago,” Castillo-Zuniga said.

She added, “Three positions had opened up at ISU, and I had an interview with the chair of the Foreign Language department. She said, ‘Let’s try one semester to see how well you do with your classes.’ 

So after one semester, I met with one of my professors and she said, ‘I think you have a lot of potential … you should stay here in the program.’ At that moment, I changed my career, I changed my life, and I am more than happy that I did that. I really enjoy teaching Spanish at ISU.” 

Marinelly Castillo-Zuniga, Spanish lecturer, shares her favorite hispanic culture artifacts that she keeps in her office. She said, “In order for a student to truly learn the Spanish language they must learn about the culture.”

Castillo-Zuniga takes pleasure in teaching summer courses at ISU and is currently enjoying her Spanish 115.15 class. Although she typically visits Venezuela in the summer, she has decided to stay in Bloomington in order to help students learn Spanish while also enjoying the beautiful weather.

“I really like teaching this summer because I didn’t have any huge plans. My mom is coming from Venezuela to visit me. Also the summer course I am teaching is a small class, and I really like that because that helps me become more personal with the students … over six weeks there is a lot that has to be taught and it can seem really demanding,” Castillo-Zuniga explained. 

“I also do a lot of gardening and I have a lot of flowers. I plant every year and I spend a lot of money, but it’s worth it. Also, I love to walk my two dogs and walk maybe 4 to 6 miles on the Constitution Trail,” she added.

Castillo-Zuniga not only stresses the importance of learning a foreign language, but also encourages students to live life to its fullest potential. For the reason that college can be very stressful, the ISU professor believes that students should find time to do activities that make them happy.

“I always tell my students that they have to enjoy all of the stages of their lives. They are here at ISU and of course they have to be serious about their classes, but don’t forget that they need to live. 

Time runs away so fast and I tell them you are here and yes you have to compromise, but you need to find time to go to the cinema, to go to a dance, and to enjoy yourselves because when you graduate you’ll say, ‘Oh my God I didn’t do this or that’ and it’s too late,” she said. 

“Most of the time I tell them they need to do what makes them the happiest because if they’re not happy with what they’re doing, they will be miserable for the rest of their lives.

When I was in accounting I loved what I was doing but after seven years I was frustrated because I didn’t have time to enjoy time with my friends or my family, and now as a teacher I have plenty of time to do the things I like,” Castillo-Zuniga added.