Isabel Hanson, shown here with agricultural economist Greg Hanson, is Latin America and Caribbean program coordinator for the college’s Office of International Programs. She has provided consistency and quality in translation of educational materials into Spanish.

Isabel Hanson, Latin America and Caribbean program coordinator for the college’s Office of International Programs, has stepped in to help fill that need. Hanson, who is from Costa Rica and has been with the college for four years, provides faculty and staff with consistency in quality, cost, and distribution of Spanish-language materials. “There is much more to translation than this word in English means this word in Spanish,” she says. “When I translate a document, I take into consideration the context and work to make the text clear to everyone.”

One recent translation project involves FINPACK, a farm financial planning and analysis software package developed by the University of Minnesota. Hanson has translated this software into Spanish and has adapted it for countries such as Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, and Mexico. The program helps farmers evaluate their financial position, explore alternatives, and make informed business decisions. “This is a very easy program to use,” says Hanson. “It gives farmers a way to organize their financial records, which they need if they are applying for a loan. They can also program different scenarios: How can I make my farm more profitable? If I buy a new tractor, or rent more land, or change crops—how will that affect profits?

“While this program has been in use in English for many years, it has not been available for Spanish-speaking farm operators,” Hanson continues. “We look at it as an equalizer. A lot of Latino producers don’t have equal access to farm credit because they don’t have the financial records. We first introduced Spanish FINPACK in Costa Rica, giving producers the same access to information and farm credit that American producers have.” Hanson has also translated a finance management correspondence course into Spanish. Developed by agricultural economist Greg Hanson, Farm Financial Analysis Training is a hands-on course designed to help farmers and ranchers learn the basics of finance.

Translation of English materials into Spanish is just one activity taking place under the umbrella of the college’s new Latino Agricultural Resource Center (LARC), which serves as a focal point for existing initiatives that serve Latino audiences, as well as for planned new programs. “Hispanics are the largest and fastest-growing minority group in the country,” says Behring. “According to 2000 census data, between 1990 and 2000 the Hispanic population in Pennsylvania grew by 70 percent. That creates a need for more coordinated and comprehensive
educational programming. Latin American and Hispanic populations both at home and abroad constitute a primary program area as we continue to look for ways to bridge issues of interest and community in Pennsylvania with international partnerships. We’re excited about LARC—it makes sense to have a home for all our work with Latino populations, both domestic and international efforts.”

One of the college’s goals is to provide more opportunities for students to learn Spanish on campus. The college, in partnership with Penn State’s College of Liberal Arts, now offers a Spanish language course for agricultural science students, and plans are under way to build a second course. Educational programs, under the rubric of LARC, will be designed for extension educators and their clientele as well. LARC will also collect, analyze, and maintain data on domestic and international issues related to the growth of Latino populations in agriculture. This information should be useful to faculty and extension educators in seeking grants and planning programs.