Humanities, Communications and Languages

Welcome to Humanities and Foreign Languages

The Department of Humanities and Foreign Languages provides high quality instruction in nine disciplines. Faculty in American Sign Language, Chinese, English for Academic Purposes (EAP), French, humanities, philosophy, religious studies, Spanish, and speech contribute to the college's General Education curriculum by helping students acquire valuable critical thinking and communication skills, and by teaching them about creative human endeavors in the past and the present, which inspire a better future. These disciplines reflect the quintessential human values that connect each and all of us to the societies we inhabit here at home, in our state and nation, and throughout the world. Courses in the Humanities and Foreign Languages department prepare students for continuing their educations and for success in a wide variety of non-professional and professional careers.

Our Standard and Commitment to Learning

The learning environment we foster is both challenging and supportive. We maintain high academic standards, and we strive to promote widely-accepted contemporary values relating to diversity, understanding, respect for world cultures, and sustainable care for human and physical environments. In these ways, we work together to support Santa Fe College's guiding mission.

Mission Statement

The faculty and staff in the Department of Humanities and Foreign Languages work to develop students’ ability to think critically and ethically, and to communicate effectively, by providing learning opportunities in American Sign Language, Chinese, French, humanities, philosophy, religion, Spanish, and speech.

The Department's Values

  • Appreciation of world cultures
  • Recognition of the centrality of the humanities in society and to the individual
  • Cultural diversity and equity
  • Personal responsibility, rational thought, and ethical behavior
  • Academic freedom, academic excellence, and intellectual inquiry
  • Professional development of its members

The Department's Mission

  • Cultivate students' verbal, written, and critical thinking skills
  • Broaden students' cultural, personal, and intellectual horizons
  • Provide learning opportunities that ensure the highest levels of academic performance
  • Foster an environment that supports academic freedom
  • Promote the study of primary texts, where appropriate, in order to improve student skills, and to afford direct student engagement with cultural artifacts and media
  • Utilize information technologies to facilitate student learning
  • Foster and increase interest in and appreciation of the arts, the humanities, and languages
  • Recruit, develop, and retain qualified faculty and staff
  • Identify, obtain, and utilize the material resources necessary to implement the department's mission
  • Support the mission, goals, and objectives of the Academic Affairs' Division of Liberal Arts & Sciences, and of all units at Santa Fe College