Written by: Neha Kohli
Every Monday, from 6:00-7:00pm, the Multicultural Center at Rice University is buzzing with the sound of languages. At the front of the room stands Paige Mathys-Pierce. A senior at Martel College, Paige is spending her last year at Rice, taking everything in. A French and Francophone Studies major, Paige has spent much of her time at Rice merging her passion for language with community at home, and abroad.
Much of her experience working with language comes from her work with the MCLLC Student Ambassador Program. Created by Professor Cuti and Branagan, this program offers a way for student ambassadors to act as liaisons between the language department and students. Paige saw this as an opportunity, an opportunity to make a difference in the way Rice students interacted with language, and a culture of care.
You’re probably wondering what keeps the Multicultural Center alive on these Monday evening’s? The answer is Paige’s latest language endeavor. A new initiative called “Conversation Cultures,” a project that stems from her own journey with language. On her path to learning Farsi, Paige participates in a program called, Chai in Conversation. Through virtual check-ins, these conversations go beyond the standard student-teacher interaction. Instead, these Zoom calls are spaces for Paige and other students learning Farsi to build community through the common ground of bettering their language skills.
“The online space gave me support,” she explains, “and I started thinking: why not bring that kind of community care into the language-learning community at Rice?”
This idea sparked a peer led support project centered on language learning. “For students to come together and support one another in their learning while collectively reflecting on how to practice a stronger culture of care in the academic community and in life,” Paige says. She sees it as directly connected to Rice’s culture of care: “A big driving factor of why I’m doing it is because in the mission statement we talk about doing things through a culture of care. This project aligns seamlessly with that goal.”
Paige’s dedication to language has also shaped her experiences abroad. Through Rice in France and Rice in Jordan, she has been able to practice French and Arabic abroad, in communities full of unique experiences.
“Our communities are already multilingual, and these experiences abroad and at Rice have shown me how much love and care are expressed across languages.”
Language learning is a way of practicing care because it shows us that communication goes far beyond words. A culture of care can be expressed through language. It doesn’t necessarily replace rich cultures, but it gives us a way to blend our unique voices.
In her final year at Rice, Paige Mattys Peirce won’t just be leaving college, she'll leave a legacy of care behind. She’ll be parting ways with a community that knows how to learn, and listen.