Perla Escobar-Faerber realized she wanted to know more about language and bilingualism while serving as a service missionary at age 19. Having grown up in a bilingual household, she had questions about what sociolinguistic factors (such as class, dialect, and gender differences) affect language learning and how different bilingual communities hold both differing and similar language practices.
Now a PhD student in Hispanic linguistics, her interest in this topic has led her to a Mexican American community in the Twin Cities where she works to understand what it means to live within two cultures at once, as well as what helps a family preserve its language. With an intimate background in multilingualism, she knows firsthand how important language is when it comes to one’s identity and sense of belonging, especially within a bilingual community.
“This is a community where I work with the children and where I also get to develop great friendships,” says Escobar-Faerber, highlighting the collaborative nature of her experience.
Through her work in the community, she has found that “language is not just communication—it’s deeply tied to faith, family and culture.” The community Escobar-Faerber works with balances the challenges of two different cultures and languages coming together to create a vibrant space where those differences are celebrated and used to enrich the culture they operate within.
Escobar-Faerber’s work aims to encourage the learning of heritage languages. “My findings suggest the importance of supporting heritage speakers through linguistically inclusive classrooms and programs,” she says.
She also wants to break down social barriers encountered by bilingual individuals and aims to create more social and educational spaces where being bilingual is recognized as a strength rather than an obstacle.
“[Bilingual] individuals may experience identity conflict, feel like an outsider, or experience being judged for speaking their heritage language in public, while schools may mislabel emergent bilinguals as having learning disabilities,” says Escobar-Faerber.
“It’s important to understand that bilingualism is not a deficit to overcome,” says adds, “but a resource that connects generations and strengthens communities.”
She credits the Department of Spanish and Portuguese Studies for her positive experience at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities, with its strides to ensure inclusivity and equity within the department.
Escobar-Faerber will defend her dissertation in the spring and looks forward to sharing her findings.
“I’m especially excited to revise portions of my dissertation into peer-reviewed publications and to develop new projects on family language policy in religious and community spaces,” she says. She also has plans to explore how language can be used with educational access and community-based learning.
“This next chapter feels both meaningful and full of possibility,” she says.
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