Spanish and humanities professor Dr. Rosario Hall believes teaching is about connections, culture and empowering students to find their voices.
Hall has spent the past four years teaching a range of courses at SLU, including beginning and advanced Spanish, the civilization of Europe, and world folk mythology.
Beyond the classroom, Hall serves as the faculty advisor for the English and World Languages Ambassadors, sits on the Faculty Senate and helps organize Southeastern’s annual Foreign Language Festival.
Originally from Mexico, Hall immigrated to the United States and is very proud to be an American woman.
“I’ve been here for 36 years, and I am very proud of being an American and a Mexican citizen as well,” Hall said.
Hall believes learning should be collaborative, emphasizing that professors can learn just as much from their students.
“What I love the most about working with students is that they teach me a lot. Sometimes we take ourselves very seriously as professors and forget that the students are the center of our lives here on campus,” Hall said.
As a woman, an immigrant and a person of color in academia, Hall said the experience carries additional expectations.
“Being a minority, a person of color and a woman adds extra responsibilities; there is a lot of pressure. You have to work even harder, because for some reason we are more observed and expected to be perfect.” Hall said.
After decades in higher education, Hall said Southeastern stands out because of its strong sense of community.
“What we have at Southeastern is very special. The professors really do care about their students. I might forget my students’ names occasionally, but I always remember their stories,” Hall said.
As an immigrant woman, Hall’s journey and hard work shape the way she teaches and encourages students to embrace their voices and be proud of who they are.
