Undergraduate
Language Tutoring
Fall 2023
Tutoring on global languages is available for current undergraduate USF students from all three campuses. See below to learn more about how you can attend or schedule a language tutoring session.
Additionally, check out the virtual foreign exchange program between students of the Italian program at USF and students from the University of Naples L'Orientale, Italy.
usf TAMPA | st. petersburg | SARASOTA-MANATEE
*The last day of in-person tutoring for the semester will be Thursday, November 30th.
From (Mon) December 4 through (Thurs) December 7, only virtual tutoring appointments will be offered.
WLE Tutoring Policy
Tutoring appointments are 30-minutes each. If there are no following appointments or students waiting to be tutored, then a tutor can work with you for a max of 60 minutes at their discretion. By receiving tutoring, you agree to abide by the WLE Tutoring policy.
WLE Tutoring Mode
For the Fall 2023 semester, tutoring is offered both in-person and virtually. USF St. Petersburg and USF Tampa offer in-person tutoring.
- Virtual tutoring is offered to all 3 campuses (USFT, USFSP, USFSM) by appointment only. Virtual tutoring is provided via Microsoft Teams (which you must have downloaded before your appointment). Students from USFSM (and students studying French at USFSP) are highly encouraged to take advantage of our virtual tutoring sessions.
- For In-person tutoring at USF Tampa: appointments are highly encouraged but walk-ins are welcome. Please note however that appointments take priority and, thus, walk-ins are not guaranteed tutoring aid. Tutoring takes place in our Language Lab, which is located at CPR (Cooper Hall) room 467. We encourage all students to plan their tutoring sessions in advance. You can learn more about our tutors from their bios down below.
- USF St. Petersburg also offers in-person tutoring through the Debbie Nye Sembler Student Success Center. The Spring 2023 tutoring schedule shows that tutoring is being offered for Spanish I & II. All in-person tutoring is drop-in based (no appointment necessary). Students can just stop by the front desk in DAV 107 when a tutor is scheduled. The Debbie Nye Sembler Student Success Center is a separate office from the USF World Languages department, so please go to their page for more information on their policies and procedures.
Appointment Information
- When scheduling your appointment, please include your name, U-number, Class/Instructor and any details regarding your learning/tutoring needs in the "Notes" section.
- You will receive a confirmation email and an invitation to add the appointment to your calendar. If you have a virtual appointment, your Teams meeting link should be included in your confirmation email.
- Please notify your tutor in advance if the appointment needs to be changed or canceled. Any questions should be directed to the tutor via email.
- Be on time to the appointment and be sure to bring necessary learning materials (e.g., textbook) to the tutoring session.
* Appointments cannot be scheduled less than 24 hours or more than 21 days in advance.
Tutoring services are offered for free during the Fall and Spring semesters. The schedule will be posted at the beginning each semester.
Fall 2023 Schedule
| Language | Tutor | In-person | Virtual |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spanish and Chinese | Larry Grullon-Polanco |
Tue. 11AM-1PM Wed. 9AM-1PM Thu. 9AM-1:30AM |
Mon. 9AM-12:30PM Tue. 9AM-10:30AM Fri. 9AM-1:30PM |
| French and Linguistics | Sarah Rahman |
Mon. 10AM-1PM Tue. 9AM-11AM Wed. 2PM-5PM Thu. 9AM-11AM |
Wed. 9AM-1PM Fri. 10AM-4PM |
| French | Lucy Agbo |
Mon. 9:30AM-12:30PM Mon. 2:45PM-4:45PM Tue. 9:30AM-12:30PM Tue. 2:30PM-4:30PM |
Thu. 11AM-4PM Fri. 11AM-4PM |
| Linguistics | Madge Mitchell | Wed. 11AM-3:30PM | Mon. 10AM-3:30PM |
| Spanish and Grerman | Allison Martison |
Thu. 12:30PM-5PM |
Tue. 1PM-3:30PM Fri. 11AM-2PM |
| Japanese | Maria Vargas |
Tue. 1:30PM-4PM Thu. 1:30PM-4PM |
Tue. 9AM-11:30AM Thu. 9AM-11:30AM |
| Spanish | Jacob Ryba |
Mon. 2:30PM-4:30PM Wed. 2PM-5PM |
Thu. 1:30PM-2:30PM Fri. 1PM-5PM |
| Spanish and Japanese | Rosshan Baldos |
Tue. 1PM-4PM Thu. 1PM-3PM |
Mon. 1PM-4PM Wed. 1PM-3PM |
| Chinese | LuoXiangyu Zhang |
Mon. 2PM-4PM Wed. 10AM-1PM |
Thu. 10AM-3PM |
Meet Your Tutors
Lucy Agbo - French
Hello, my name is Lucy Agbo I hold a degree in French from Benue State University, Nigeria.
Currently, I am pursuing a master’s degree in linguistics: Teaching English as a Second Language at the University of South Florida.
Back home, I was a Teaching Assistant at the University of Abuja Business School, Nigeria. I have been teaching French since I graduated from the University in 2016, so I help my students develop their French proficiency while improving their reading, writing and listening skills.
I like reading, watching movies and meeting new people. I am a language enthusiast, having grown up in a society that speaks over 500 languages.
I love teaching and look forward to working with students as part of the Department of World Language's tutoring program.
Email: agbo@usf.edu
Rosshan Baldos - Spanish & Japanese
Hello, my name is Rosshan Baldos (she/they) and I am a student in the MA Linguistics program. I also received my BA in World Languages and Cultures with a concentration in Applied Linguistics here at USF, Go Bulls!
I was born in the Philippines and have lived in Florida for almost ten years. I have been learning Japanese and Spanish for a few years and am very excited to join the department and be part of students' learning journey. As a fellow language learner, I hope that you will enjoy your experience with these languages as much as I have over the years.
Outside of languages and linguistics, I enjoy getting involved on-campus with my student organization and spending quality time with my cats. Please don't hesitate to reach out to me for any help, tips, resources, or just to practice your conversational skills! I am here to help, so feel free to shoot me an email anytime.
Email: rosshanb@usf.edu
Larry Grullon-Polanco - Chinese & Spanish
Hello, my name is Larry. I am a master's student in the Linguistics: English as a Second Language program. My bachelor’s degree is in music education from Florida State University. I have taught choir and guitar from elementary school to high school and used to volunteer with the Hispanic Services Council teaching English through music.
I was born in Washington Heights, Manhattan and I have always been surrounded by second language learners and users. I really feel for how difficult and rewarding learning a second language can be. Outside of school I like to take care of my plants and constantly buy books which only occasionally get read.
Email: grullonpolanco@usf.edu
Allison Martinson - Spanish & German
Hi! My name is Alli (she/her) and I am in the World Languages M.A. program: Teaching English as a second language. I recently graduated from USF with a B.A. in Applied Linguistics. I have been learning languages for almost 10 years; language learning and teaching are my passions in life! I have been studying Spanish since middle school (8+ years) and I have taken many college level Spanish classes.
I feel comfortable tutoring beginner to intermediate levels of Spanish. I have conversational skills in German, as I have traveled there a few times and have many German friends! I would love to tutor you if you are in German 1 or 2. As a second language learner, I understand the struggles of language learning and have discovered strategies that have helped me, and that can hopefully help you too! I hope we can work together to help you succeed in your language endeavors!
Email: martinson@usf.edu
Madge Mitchell - Linguistics
Hi! My name is Madge, and I’m a student in the M.A. Linguistics / Teaching English as a Second Language program. I attended USF for my undergraduate degree as well, where I was a linguistics major too!
Most of my work is within sociolinguistics, pragmatics, and discourse analysis, but I’m a big fan of all sorts of linguistics research (not a huge fan of phonetics but I enjoy using the IPA). Whether you’re interested in bouncing some ideas around about potential linguistics research, practicing IPA, trying to better understand semantics, or more… I can help out!
Email: mmmitchell1@usf.edu
Sarah Rahman - French
Hello, my name is Sarah. Having graduated from the Ohio State University with a B.A. in English and Linguistics, along with a minor in French, I am currently pursuing a M.A. in Applied Linguistics here at USF.
I call Dubai, U.A.E., home but I’m excited to be here at Tampa. In my free time I like reading and exploring new spots around town. Having grown up speaking both Bengali and English, I have a deep appreciation for languages and language learning.
I love working with students, and I’m looking forward to teaching French and Linguistics. I’m open to questions, so feel free to reach out with any queries you have!
Email: rahmans@usf.edu
Jacob Ryba - Spanish
Hello, my name is Jacob, and I am a member of the M.A. Linguistics program. I graduated from Southern Illinois University with a B.A. in Spanish and have since accumulated 5 years of foreign language teaching experience in a variety of formats. Language learning has been incredibly valuable for me, and I love helping others explore their potential to do the same.
Email: jacobryba@usf.edu
Maria Vargas - Japanese
Hello! My name is Maria and I am a recent graduate from USF receiving a Bachelor's in World Languages and Cultures with a concentration in East Asian Languages and Cultures, and a minor in Linguistics. I am currently pursuing my master's in Linguistics: Teaching English as a Second Language.
I’m from Haines City, Florida. Being bilingual (growing up speaking both Spanish and English), I have a deep appreciation for languages and language learning. I started learning Japanese during my undergraudate studies. Besides Japanese, there are other languages I want to learn in the near future, like French, Italian, and Portuguese. In my free time I enjoy dancing, watching movies, building puzzles and trying new food spots.
As a language learner myself, I want to be an aid to help students on their journey to improving their Japanese! I can recommend helpful study material from books and apps that have worked for me. If you have any questions about grammar and vocabulary, or just want to practice your conversation skills, please feel free to reach out.
My strengths are Japanese 1 and 2, but I can assist with higher levels, too.
Email: mivargas@usf.edu
Luoxiangyu Zhang - Chinese
Hello, my name is Luoxiangyu Zhang, and I also go by Xiangyu. I am currently pursuing my PhD in Linguistics and Applied Language Studies (LALS) at USF. I received my Master’s degree in TESOL from Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University in 2022. I taught Modern Chinese courses (II & IV levels) in Spring 2023 at USF.
I was born in Guangxi Province, China, and spent 18 years there. During this time, I not only became fluent in “standard” Mandarin but also had the opportunity to learn several regional dialects, including Southwestern Guanhua and Cantonese. Studying applied linguistics has heightened my awareness of how these regional dialects play a unique role in shaping my views as a language user, learner, and teacher.
Whether you are interested in learning Putonghua or seeking to delve deeper into the realm of Chinese languages, I am here and delighted to offer my help!
Email: luoxiangyuz@usf.edu
ITALIAN TANDEM PROJECT
The Italian program at the University of South Florida is delighted to announce Tandem Project (Progetto Tandem), a great opportunity to engage in an online exchange between students of the Italian program at USF and Italian students from the University of Naples L'Orientale!
The Tandem Project was established in 2021 through a collaboration between Prof. Patrizia La Trecchia, head of the Italian Program at the University of South Florida, and Prof. Giuseppe Balirano, the President of the University of Naples L'Orientale Language Center (CLAOR Centro Linguistico di Ateneo Università L'Orientale) in Italy.
We encourage our students of Italian to take advantage of it! If you would like to participate in the exchange program, please:
- Scan the QR code with your phone's camara app to be directed to the Google Doc sign-up sheet (active since Feb, 2022).
- Add your name and email to get signed up!
For more information on the Project Tandem collaboration between the USF Italian Program and the University of Naples L'Orientale Language Center, please visit their Progetto Tandem page.
Our enrolled students with the Italian Program at USF can also reach out directly to Feed Your Mind Associazione Culturale mentioning that they are students of Italian at USF.
Students can contact them directly @FeedYourMindAssociazioneCulturale on Facebook, @feedyourmindac on Instagram, WhatsApp +39-333-581-2876, or email info.feedyourmind@gmail.com.
Please share with them which class you are taking (Italian I, Italian II, Italian III, Italian Conversation, etc.) and the name of your professor. Feed Your Mind is located in Pompei and they are going to match you with their Italian students who are learning English!