{"id":227618,"date":"2026-03-24T10:11:40","date_gmt":"2026-03-24T14:11:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/newscenter\/?p=227618"},"modified":"2026-03-24T16:42:42","modified_gmt":"2026-03-24T20:42:42","slug":"from-one-major-to-three-in-four-years-connecting-data-science-german-and-linguistics-at-montclair","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/newscenter\/2026\/03\/24\/from-one-major-to-three-in-four-years-connecting-data-science-german-and-linguistics-at-montclair\/","title":{"rendered":"From One Major to Three in Four Years: Connecting Data Science, German and Linguistics at Montclair"},"content":{"rendered":"

Triple major Isabella Zarate Gonzalez spends Friday afternoons helping children learn German in Montclair State University\u2019s SPARK Lab, an after-school program that brings local elementary students to campus for games, songs and basic conversation.<\/p>\n

As an international student from Mexico, she was drawn to Montclair\u2019s computing<\/a> program and the chance to build a tech career. After she excelled in a German language<\/a> course, that success became the first step toward multiple degrees, as faculty encouraged her to add German, explore linguistics and step into teaching and research roles she had never considered. She even turned her work with children in German into a research project on how programs like the SPARK Lab influence college students\u2019 interest in teaching.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the most important things I\u2019ve learned at Montclair is that you don\u2019t have to limit yourself to just one thing,\u201d Zarate Gonzalez says.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"A
At Montclair\u2019s SPARK Lab, Isabella Zarate Gonzalez collaborates with fellow students to plan German lessons for local schoolchildren as part of a national \u2018SPARK for German\u2019 teaching network. (Photo by University Photographer Mike Peters)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Community\u2011engaged learning that opens doors<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The SPARK Lab<\/a> is a partnership between Montclair and nearby schools, giving children early access to world languages while mentoring college students into community\u2011focused leadership roles. It is part of a national network supported by the American Association of Teachers of German and the Goethe\u2011Institut<\/a><\/span>.<\/span> Zarate Gonzalez is among the students who teach German to elementary school children one hour a week for six weeks each semester, including a Meistergruppe for kids who speak German as a heritage language.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"A
Children in Montclair\u2019s SPARK Lab listen to German fairy tales. (Photo by University Photographer Mike Peters)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As part of a multi\u2011university research project with the University of Tennessee Knoxville, the University of St. Thomas and the University of Chicago, she led data collection and analysis on how SPARK affects college students. She focused on whether experiences like the SPARK Lab encourage students to consider teaching German and what broadly applicable professional skills they gain, surveying Montclair\u2019s student instructors about their motivations and how teaching had changed their career plans.<\/span><\/p>\n

The research findings, co\u2011authored with faculty and collaborators at the four campuses, were published in a peer\u2011reviewed journal<\/a> and presented at the 2023 American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages conference in Chicago.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Isabella
At Montclair, Isabella Zarate Gonzalez found support to grow a single major into three degrees \u2013 Data Science, Language, Business and Culture, and German \u2013 plus a minor in Linguistics. (Photo by University Photographer Mike Peters)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Studying abroad with scholarship support<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Scholarship support opened the world for Zarate Gonzalez.<\/span><\/p>\n

Through the\u00a0 Montclair\u2013Graz Sister City Scholarship<\/a>, she spent the 2024\u201325 academic year studying in Graz, Austria. The full scholarship, funded by Montclair State University, Montclair\u2019s Overseas Neighbors and the City of Graz, provides free tuition, room and a small stipend and sends two Montclair undergraduates each year to study in Montclair\u2019s sister city.<\/span><\/p>\n

Montclair\u2019s status as a Hispanic\u2011Serving Institution also helped her win a full scholarship to Middlebury\u2019s prestigious German Language School<\/a>, a summer immersion program.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThere aren\u2019t a lot of people who can say, \u2018This university allowed me to do three bachelor\u2019s degrees, win full scholarships and study abroad in Europe,\u2019\u201d she says.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Isabella
Isabella Zarate Gonzalez talks with Associate Professor Pascale LaFountain in Montclair\u2019s SPARK Lab. In addition to their work there, Zarate Gonzalez joined LaFountain on a translation project for an archive of Austrian Jewish history. (Photo by University Photographer Mike Peters)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Hands-on research and a peek into history<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Advanced language study also led Zarate Gonzalez into meaningful work and helped her discover the academic field that ties her interests together. With Associate Professor Pascale LaFountain and local resident Diane Forman, she worked on a translation project for an extraordinary archive of Austrian Jewish history<\/a> centered on Forman\u2019s grandfather, composer Wilhelm Grosz.<\/span><\/p>\n

The team organized and translated Grosz\u2019s letters \u2013 including correspondence with figures such as Leonard Bernstein and Langston Hughes \u2013 along with his musical manuscripts, Nazi\u2011era property documents and personal library, preparing the materials for the Exil.arte Jewish music archive in Austria.<\/span><\/p>\n

For Zarate Gonzalez, working so closely with those documents made the Holocaust feel personal and showed her how language skills and data\u2011driven thinking could come together in fields like Computational Linguistics.<\/span><\/p>\n

Looking ahead<\/strong><\/h2>\n

When Zarate Gonzalez graduates in May 2026, she will have earned degrees in Data Science<\/a>; Language, Business and Culture<\/a>; and German<\/a>, plus a minor in Linguistics<\/a> \u2013 all completed in four years.<\/span><\/p>\n

Now, as she looks ahead, she is exploring teaching opportunities in both German and STEM fields and planning for a future master\u2019s program in Computational Linguistics<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI think about what would have happened if I had chosen not to come to Montclair,\u201d she says. \u201cMy life would be completely different. I genuinely believe I got the most out of it.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Ready to start your Montclair journey?<\/strong> Learn more about the College of Science and Mathematics<\/a> and the Department of World Languages and Cultures<\/a> at Montclair.<\/span><\/p>\n

Accepted students:<\/strong> Make it official by submitting your new student deposit<\/a> and registering to attend Accepted Students Day.<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

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