{"id":1282,"date":"2019-10-28T09:30:57","date_gmt":"2019-10-28T16:30:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/?p=1282"},"modified":"2024-07-23T11:11:33","modified_gmt":"2024-07-23T18:11:33","slug":"online-spanish-degree-maria-reading","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/online-spanish-degree-maria-reading\/","title":{"rendered":"Online Spanish studies help alum take her career to a higher degree"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"intrinsic-container intrinsic-container-16x9\" style=\"margin-bottom: 20px;\"><span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"744\" height=\"419\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/XTXQ1XpxELA?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox\"><\/iframe><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-caption video-caption-full\">\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">By earning her degree online with OSU, Maria Reading checked several items off her wish list: realizing her dream of graduating from college, advancing her career and gaining formal training in a language that is a part of her family&#8217;s history.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2>Learning online with Oregon State \u2018has made a world of difference\u2019 to Maria Reading<\/h2>\n<p>Maria Reading was a young child when she moved with her family from Mexico to Southern California. Spanish was her first language. But as she and her nine siblings began school, their world became immersed in English.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere really was no time to contemplate keeping my first language,\u201d Reading says. \u201cWe spoke in Spanish to Mom and Dad. Other than that it was all English.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Though her dad only completed third grade and worked in agriculture and construction, he instilled in her the value of an education.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWithout it you can be successful, but you have to work harder,\u201d he would tell her. \u201cI want you to use your mind.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3>Working with children, setting an example for her own<\/h3>\n<p>After high school, Reading worked as a manager for the U.S. Postal Service. She got married and started a family. When her children were grown, she went to work as a teaching assistant in Houston, Texas, near where she now lives.<\/p>\n<p>It was while working with students that Reading realized she still wanted to fulfill a lifelong dream to earn a college degree and reclaim her native language.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s very important to be a positive role model to my children and grandchildren,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<p>Reading took some college coursework when she was younger. She was looking for a program that would allow her to continue working while she studied Spanish to become an ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) teacher. That\u2019s when she learned about Oregon State University Ecampus, ranked top 10 in the nation for online education for the fifth straight year by U.S. News &amp; World Report.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was the best fit for me,\u201d Reading says.<\/p>\n<h3>Taking her Spanish studies abroad<\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/online-degrees\/undergraduate\/spanish\/\">Earning a Spanish degree online with OSU<\/a> gives her and other students the language skills they need to succeed in their careers while teaching them about other cultures. She says her instructors shared great insights. One of her favorite experiences was studying abroad in Samora, Spain. There she practiced Spanish while learning history.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><span class=\"smartquote\">&ldquo;<\/span>I learned a lot about the country and civilization in general (while studying abroad in Spain). &#8230; It was a great opportunity to keep up, learn the language and take it to a higher degree.<span class=\"smartquote\">&rdquo;<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>\u201cI learned a lot about the country and civilization in general,\u201d she recalls.<\/p>\n<p>Balancing school and life was easier for Reading because her instructors were so responsive. She also got help from her peers. Oregon State Ecampus courses use many tools to engage with students including VoiceThread, a cloud-based application that Reading used to converse with her classmates. For her language courses, she could only speak and write in Spanish.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was a great opportunity to keep up, learn the language and take it to a higher degree,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<p>Before she went back to school, Reading says she was embarrassed when she tried to converse with her family from Mexico. Now, her cousins comment on how fluently she speaks.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s made a world of difference,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<h3>Making good on her dad&#8217;s wish<\/h3>\n<p>Reading graduated with a Spanish degree in June 2019. She and her family traveled to OSU\u2019s Corvallis campus so she could participate in the commencement ceremony and receive her diploma in person. As she prepares for her first year as an ESOL teacher in Texas, she feels ready to make a difference.<\/p>\n<p>Working as a full-time teacher pays double what she earned as an instructional aide. But completing her degree wasn\u2019t just about moving to a higher standard of living with more income.<\/p>\n<p>Her wish to inspire her children and grandchildren is also coming true. Since she went back to school, two of Reading&#8217;s adult children have enrolled in college, including her son who had previously put his studies on hold.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNow he\u2019s very motivated to finish,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<p>Reading wants her family to realize the benefits of an education, like her dad taught her. He died before he could see his daughter graduate, but her accomplishment is proof of what he believed in.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><span class=\"span-reading-time rt-reading-time\" style=\"display: block;\"><span class=\"rt-label rt-prefix\"><\/span> <span class=\"rt-time\"> 3<\/span> <span class=\"rt-label rt-postfix\">minute read<\/span><\/span>Maria Reading was a young child when she moved with her family from Mexico to Southern California. Spanish was her first language. But as she and her nine siblings began school, their world became immersed in English. While working with students many years later, Reading realized she still wanted to fulfill a lifelong dream to earn a college degree and reclaim her native language.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":1283,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,6,7,677,8],"tags":[75,641,211,161],"class_list":["post-1282","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all","category-ecampus","category-graduation","category-students-and-alumni","category-students","tag-college-of-liberal-arts","tag-languages-and-liberal-arts","tag-spanish","tag-study-abroad"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/maria-reading-web.jpg?fit=744%2C496&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7BNSE-kG","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1239,"url":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/online-language-degree-for-career\/","url_meta":{"origin":1282,"position":0},"title":"Earn a language degree online from top-ranked Oregon State Ecampus, expand your career","author":"Heather Doherty","date":"August 6, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Learn a new language and enhance your global awareness and intercultural skills by taking online language courses from Oregon State University - and set yourself up for career advancement.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;All Stories&quot;","block_context":{"text":"All Stories","link":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/category\/all\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Oregon State Ecampus language","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/Language.jpg?fit=744%2C478&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/Language.jpg?fit=744%2C478&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/Language.jpg?fit=744%2C478&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/Language.jpg?fit=744%2C478&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":983,"url":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/gustavo-ramos-nunez\/","url_meta":{"origin":1282,"position":1},"title":"Strengthening native roots with higher education","author":"Heather Doherty","date":"August 10, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Accepting comfort was not enough of a challenge for Gustavo Ramos Nu\u00f1ez, whose decision to enroll in the Spanish bachelor\u2019s degree program online through Oregon State Ecampus arose from honoring his Peruvian roots and a desire for self-improvement.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Archives&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Archives","link":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/category\/archives\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Gustavo Ramos Nunez, who earned a Spanish degree online with Oregon State Ecampus, smiling on his graduation day.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/Gustavo-Ramos-Nunez.jpg?fit=744%2C478&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/Gustavo-Ramos-Nunez.jpg?fit=744%2C478&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/Gustavo-Ramos-Nunez.jpg?fit=744%2C478&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/Gustavo-Ramos-Nunez.jpg?fit=744%2C478&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1314,"url":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/french-instructor-ana-maria-menesti\/","url_meta":{"origin":1282,"position":2},"title":"French online instructor creates an active, effective learning environment","author":"Becky Barrett","date":"January 9, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Learning a new language can be a rewarding experience. But it also implies taking risks, being vulnerable and sometimes working through confusion and frustration. It\u2019s with this understanding that instructor Ana-Maria M\u2019Enesti develops French online courses for OSU Ecampus. \u201cI create my lessons and assessments with a compassionate approach, aiming\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;All Stories&quot;","block_context":{"text":"All Stories","link":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/category\/all\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Ana-Maria M'Enesti, French instructor for Oregon State University Ecampus","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/ana-maria-menesti-french-online.jpg?fit=744%2C419&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/ana-maria-menesti-french-online.jpg?fit=744%2C419&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/ana-maria-menesti-french-online.jpg?fit=744%2C419&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/ana-maria-menesti-french-online.jpg?fit=744%2C419&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2137,"url":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/language-liberal-arts-degree-rebecca-sabine\/","url_meta":{"origin":1282,"position":3},"title":"Violinist melds music, mindfulness with an Oregon State language and liberal arts degree online","author":"Erin J. Bernard","date":"October 7, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Rebecca Sabine Ramsey had enjoyed a colorful career playing music alongside everyone from Frank Sinatra to Celine Dion, but by 2020, this professional violinist was ready for her next act. So she enrolled with Oregon State University Ecampus, determined to finish her bachelor\u2019s degree online and discover new ways to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;All Stories&quot;","block_context":{"text":"All Stories","link":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/category\/all\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"A woman works on a laptop computer while sitting at an outdoor table.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/Rebecca-Ramsey-800x450-1.jpg?fit=800%2C450&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/Rebecca-Ramsey-800x450-1.jpg?fit=800%2C450&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/Rebecca-Ramsey-800x450-1.jpg?fit=800%2C450&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/Rebecca-Ramsey-800x450-1.jpg?fit=800%2C450&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":546,"url":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/ecampus-ranked-1-liberal-arts\/","url_meta":{"origin":1282,"position":4},"title":"Ecampus ranked #1 in U.S. for online liberal arts education","author":"Tyler Hansen","date":"July 13, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Oregon State is the best university in the nation when it comes to delivering a high-quality liberal arts education online, according to a new ranking released last month. Oregon State's College of Liberal Arts offers 11 bachelor\u2019s degrees and two master\u2019s programs online through OSU Ecampus, the university\u2019s distance education\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Archives&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Archives","link":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/category\/archives\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"A black entrance sign reads Oregon State University in gold lettering surrounded by a brick ledge","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/osu-sign.jpg?fit=638%2C319&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/osu-sign.jpg?fit=638%2C319&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/osu-sign.jpg?fit=638%2C319&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":939,"url":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/raven-chakerian\/","url_meta":{"origin":1282,"position":5},"title":"Behind the scenes with Raven Chakerian, Spanish and Italian instructor","author":"Julie Cooper","date":"July 31, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Teaching immediately-applicable skills and guiding students on their multilingual journeys? 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