New Professor Shares Global Perspective and Passion for Language in the Classroom
AAMU Students Bring Spanish to Life Through Video and Culture
In Dr. Sydney Odoi’s Elementary Spanish I course at Alabama A&M University, learning Spanish extends beyond vocabulary, grammar and textbooks.
Students recently put their language skills into practice by creating videos as part of a class project. Among them is Jordyn Powers, a freshman environmental science major from St. Louis, whose video offers a glimpse into the creative ways students are using Spanish beyond traditional classroom exercises.
The approach reflects Odoi’s belief in connecting language with the cultures and experiences that give it meaning — something rooted in his own unexpected journey to Spanish.
Odoi, who joined the Department of English and Modern Languages this fall, grew up in Accra, Ghana, where French was the language he was expected to pursue.
Dr. Sydney Odoi, assistant professor of Spanish at Alabama A&M University, engages with students during his Elementary Spanish I course.
Ghana is surrounded by several French-speaking countries, and Odoi said many parents encourage their children to study French because of the language’s prominence in the region. He studied French in high school and excelled in it.
His parents wanted him to continue.
Instead, he fell in love with Spanish.
“I got into Spanish by accident,” Odoi said.
When he entered the University of Ghana, his strong performance in French led to an opportunity to study Spanish, psychology and French. College was his first exposure to Spanish, a language far less commonly studied in Ghana.
“My parents wanted me to learn French, but I loved Spanish,” Odoi said.
He immersed himself in the language, listening to Spanish-language music, watching telenovelas and learning more about the cultures of the Spanish-speaking world.
Then came an opportunity that would shape his career.
Dr. Sydney Odoi at the University of Cienfuegos in Cienfuegos, Cuba, where he studied during the 2009-10 academic year on a scholarship from the government of Ghana.
Odoi received a scholarship from the government of Ghana to spend the 2009-10 academic year studying at Carlos Rafael Rodriguez Universidad de Cienfuegos in Cienfuegos, Cuba. Living and studying in a Spanish-speaking country deepened a passion that had begun only a few years earlier in a college classroom.
“It was a wonderful experience,” Odoi said. “That solidified my interest to continue learning and then teach Spanish.”
Odoi earned a bachelor’s degree in Spanish and psychology from the University of Ghana. After moving to the United States, he earned a master’s degree in Spanish applied linguistics and teaching methodology from Indiana University of Pennsylvania and a doctorate in Spanish applied linguistics from the University of Houston.
Before joining AAMU, Odoi taught for five years at Prairie View A&M University in Texas. After earning his doctorate, he began looking for a position that more closely aligned with his education and experience.
He found that opportunity at AAMU, joining the faculty in August as an assistant professor of Spanish.
“I like the community,” Odoi said. “Everybody has been so nice and welcoming.”
Odoi is now bringing the same curiosity about language and culture that took him from Ghana to Cuba into his classroom at AAMU. Students are encouraged not only to learn Spanish but also to experience the cultures and communities connected to the language.
Some students recently attended a Hispanic cultural festival at The Orion Amphitheater in Huntsville during Hispanic Heritage Month, providing another opportunity to experience Spanish-speaking cultures beyond the classroom.
Odoi is also looking toward the future of Spanish instruction at AAMU. Working with colleagues in the Department of English and Modern Languages, he is helping develop a Spanish minor and explore adding Spanish to the University’s dual enrollment offerings, which could eventually allow high school students to earn college Spanish credit before enrolling at AAMU.
For Odoi, those efforts continue a journey that began unexpectedly in a college classroom in Ghana and ultimately led to a career teaching Spanish in the United States.
Now, at Alabama A&M, Odoi is helping students begin Spanish journeys of their own.
Dr. Sydney Odoi, back in red, and Jordyn Powers, front in white, are pictured with students from Odoi’s Elementary Spanish I course at Alabama A&M University.