Enrique Herrera is one of the two full-time Spanish professors at Lock Haven University. He has been teaching at LHU for 23 years.
Herrera describes his educational background as unique due to having a master’s degree in Economics and a doctorate in Spanish. While he was in the process of finishing his Ph.D. at Florida State University, Herrera decided to switch his major. “Another side of me was gravitating toward literature in Spanish,” he said.
Herrera teaches six levels of Spanish courses at LHU. Other classes taught by Herrera include Latin American Culture, Spanish American Regionalist Novel, and Spanish Drama I and II. Spanish Drama II is his favorite class to teach because of the skit performances and discussions of hispanic literature.
According to Herrera, the best part of his job is being able to watch his students’ progression of skills from their first Spanish course to their last. “It’s fascinating to see my students dive deep into Spanish culture for their presentations, skits, or discussions about hispanic films,” he said.
One of Herrera’s favorite memories at LHU was being able to work with the Latin American Studies Program to form the Hispanic Film Series in 2000. They hosted movie events that showed hispanic films several times a semester. The goal of these events was to make the LHU community feel more connected with latino culture, according to Herrera.
From 2015 to 2019, Herrera also coordinated LHU’s Celebration of Scholarship. The event showcased the work made by students and faculty from all departments and included art exhibits, poster galleries, presentations about academic research, and theatrical performances.
In Herrera’s freetime, he enjoys playing recreational soccer in State College. Another one of his favorite pastimes is cooking hispanic cuisine. “I started cooking as a result of missing some of the flavors of Peru,” he said.
Herrera encourages his students to embrace the Spanish language even outside of the classroom. He advises them to enhance their comprehension by watching their favorite movies with Spanish captions alongside listening to audiobooks in the native language.
The best way to get in contact with Herrera is by visiting him in his office located in Raub 420 or through email at eherrera@commonwealth.edu.
