Undergraduate | Department of Spanish

Undergraduate

With over 400 million speakers in more than twenty countries, Spanish is one of the most spoken languages in the world rivaled only by English and Mandarin Chinese. In the U.S. there are 41 million native speakers of Spanish, and 11 million people speak it as a second language. No doubt it is the fastest-growing language in this country. Daily use of Spanish is so common in the U.S. - at stores, at restaurants, at work, on television, on the radio, on the streets, etc. - that most Americans take it for granted. In the state of Texas with its dynamic Hispanic population, there are over 6 million speakers of Spanish, and growing. No doubt, knowing English and Spanish will give anyone a clear edge in today's work world. Click here for a video on how Spanish can help you.

UNT offers a major and minor in Spanish. At the basic and intermediate levels students master all Spanish language skills through oral and written practice as well as online activities. Advanced students take prerequisite classes before choosing from a variety of courses in literature, culture, professions, civilization and cinema to fulfill requirements and electives.

UNT Spanish graduates have gone on to become secondary school teachers and work in various businesses, as well as continue on to graduate school, among other professions. Many UNT students also do a double major in Spanish and another field - such as business, music, biology and journalism, for example - since they are well aware that NO MATTER WHAT YOU DO, SPANISH WILL HELP YOU!

See our Spanish majors talk about their many positive experiences in our program:

Faculty

Professors

  • Dr. Jorge Aviles-Diz (Professor of Spanish): Eighteenth and Nineteenth Century Spanish Literature
  • Dr. Jongsoo Lee (Professor of Spanish): Prehispanic, Colonial and Nineteenth Century Latin American Literature
  • Dr. Samuel Manickam (Associate Professor of Spanish, Chair): Twentieth and Twenty-first Century Latin American Narrative
  • Dr. Teresa Marrero (Professor of Spanish): Twentieth and Twenty-first Century Latin American and Latino Theatre
  • Dr. Jiyoung Yoon (Associate Professor of Spanish): Spanish Linguistics

Lecturers

  • Dr. María Carpio Manickam (Lecturer)
  • Ms. Marla Estes (Principal Lecturer)
  • Ms. Connie Martínez (Principal Lecturer)
  • Dr. Esther Sánchez-Couto (Lecturer)
  • Mr. Steven Sheppard (Senior Lecturer)
  • Dr. Emily Thurman (Senior Lecturer)
  • Ms. María Tovar (Principal Lecturer)

Adjunct Faculty

  • Ms. Livia Bambacaro
  • Mr. Eric Fuentes
  • Ms. Cecilia García
  • Ms. Natali Herrera-Pacheco
  • Mr. Rodrigo López
  • Ms. Yunet Puentes
  • Ms. Stella Reed
  • Ms. Nicholey Schwab
  • Ms. Natalie Thomas
  • Dr. Karen Upchurch
  • Ms. Crystal Wagner
  • Mr. Andrew Wahlert

Please see the Faculty section of our website for contact information and additional information about faculty.

Contact Information

Gabe Ignatow: Chair

Emily Thurman: Undergraduate Advisor

Steve Sheppard: First Year Spanish Coordinator

Marla Estes: Second Year Spanish Coordinator