GAPSA mixes language, lunch

Students at Penn can learn a foreign language by taking a class -- or by munching sandwiches and chatting with a native speaker. Beginning today, the Foreign Language Lunch Program will try to help students enrich their knowledge of foreign languages. For $44, students can eat lunch at the Gold Standard Restaurant near 36th Street and Locust Walk with native speakers of various languages, including Spanish, French and Chinese. The program runs for eight weeks. Sponsored by the Wharton Language and Cultural Club, the yearly program is organized by the Graduate and Professional Student Assembly. Although graduate students are running the program, all University students are invited to participate. Wharton graduate student and program coordinator Rich Caballero expects about 100 students to come to the different lunches. Art History graduate student Christy Gruber will serve as one of the native French speakers for the beginning and intermediate French lunch tables. Originally from Switzerland, Gruber explained that she became involved with the program because when she moved to the United States at age 13, she realized "how intimidating a second or foreign language can be at times." Another one of the native speakers scheduled to participate in the series of lunches is Julio Gonzalez, a post-doctoral student at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania with a doctorate in High Energy Physics. Born in Chile, he is one of the native speakers for the Spanish tables. "There is a humane side to learning a language this way. It's not an abstract, and that makes learning much easier and more fun," he said. Caballero added: "Language tables are a great way to practice a foreign language. You have to eat lunch, so why not use the hour to learn another language and meet interesting people?" Students interested in the program can contact Caballero at richar21@wharton.upenn.edu or gapsa@gapsa.upenn.edu.