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Building bridges: The role of SFU’s Office of Francophone and Francophile Affairs (OFFA) in promoting French education and culture in BC
SFU鈥檚 Office of Francophone and Francophile Affairs (OFFA) has a lot to celebrate this year.
In addition to marking two decades of making the university a provincial destination for students who want to pursue higher education in French, the office recently secured $10.5 million in federal funding to continue supporting French programs and initiatives at SFU.
鈥淪FU is a leading institution for French post-secondary education in Western Canada. There is a strong sense of pride in knowing that we've contributed to SFU鈥檚 reputation as the top choice for students seeking to advance their French studies in BC,鈥� says OFFA director Gino LeBlanc.
OFFA鈥檚 support of French language instruction has made various programs at SFU possible, including the Faculty of Education鈥檚 French Teacher Education program and the French Cohort Program (FCP) in Public and International Affairs. In addition, OFFA collaborates with several departments to offer courses taught in French, including political science, history, French and Indigenous studies.
鈥淪FU is the only university in BC that offers a PhD in French鈥攖hat鈥檚 an accomplishment to be proud of,鈥� says LeBlanc.
OFFA also offers support and funding to instructors who are interested in integrating a portion of French content into their courses鈥攆or example by sponsoring a Francophone guest speaker.
The importance of French in BC
LeBlanc explains that one of the driving forces behind the work of his office is to help students engage with a different worldview.
鈥淭here are over 340 million French speakers worldwide. When high school students and their parents ask why studying French at SFU is important, I emphasize that it鈥檚 not just about being an official language of Canada鈥攅ngaging with another language allows learners to see and experience a different worldview than the dominant one. This can be a very enriching way for them to explore their disciplines, their communities and the world,鈥� LeBlanc explains.
How to get involved
Interested in learning more about courses taught in French at SFU? In addition to the range of cultural, academic, and professional activities taking place during the month of March as part of OFFA鈥檚 annual Printemps de la Francophonie, OFFA invites you to attend their first ever open house on March 20, 11:00 a.m.鈥�2:00 p.m. Register here.