Degrees in humanities are often seen as less practical than those in STEM fields. Outgoing Washington University professor Ignacio M. Sánchez Prado believes that's a misconception. Over the past two decades, his Latin American Studies students went on to find careers across a variety of disciplines, including diplomacy, law, medicine and business.
"It's one of those small fields that people don't know very much about, but the students really are enthusiastic about," he said. "I have many students who went into business, beating people with [a Master of Business Administration]. They could engage with international business better than someone with an MBA because that cultural depth is not taught in business school."
Sánchez Prado came to St. Louis in 2006 at the invitation of WashU professor Mabel Moraña. The two were instrumental in building the university's Latin American Studies program. While Sánchez Prado said he found the work rewarding, and St. Louis to be a great place to live, the time is right for him to accept a new position teaching Hispanic Studies at Cornell University starting in August.
He hopes WashU will continue to support its Latin American Studies program. His departure comes at a time when many colleges and universities are defunding language departments and cultural studies programs — a trend he said is due to financial and political pressures.
"When the economic hammer comes, the natural instinct of universities is to protect the sciences and the business school, and then cut humanities and social sciences. I think this is mistaken," Sánchez Prado said. "As we're overtaken with AI, there are things about the humanities that are going to be automated, like everything else, but the fundamental cognitive capacities that the humanities embody — from reading and writing, to thinking critically, to navigating complex social scenarios, to understanding other cultures — there is no AI that is going to come and replace that.
"They're closing and reducing the very disciplines that may equip our minds to have skills above what AI is going to replace," he added.
In addition to equipping his students with skills beyond what artificial intelligence can offer, Sánchez Prado is serious about having students build proficiency in tasks that they would otherwise rely on AI to complete. At WashU, he didn't allow computers in his classroom. It's a practice he intends to continue at Cornell.
"I ask them to read, to take notes, and they have to be able to present out of their notes with no other support," he said. "Just like you still learn how to do additions and subtractions in school, even though you have a calculator, you have to know how to read, think and interpret, even if an AI is going to be able to help you do some of that stuff."
By having students prioritize the process of learning over the outcome of a lesson, Sánchez Prado hopes to make his students more resilient as they go on to face a tough job market after graduation.
"I think what the students are experiencing is a loss — a generational loss of mental capacities and skills that [is] going to be very hard to revert if teachers like myself do not take arms into preserving them," he said.
Even with all the challenges that threaten humanities departments, Sánchez Prado sees opportunity in this moment for those in higher education to let their voices be heard.
"I think that people outside universities don't really know what we do," he said. "We should really tell people what they're losing. The anti-AI sentiment is because people have become aware that they're losing something to the technology, and we have to tell them there is something in universities that is already there to help you with that."
Hear the full conversation with Ignacio M. Sánchez Prado by listening to "St. Louis on the Air" on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or click the play button below.
"St. Louis on the Air" brings you the stories of St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our region. The show is produced by Miya Norfleet, Emily Woodbury, Danny Wicentowski, Elaine Cha and Alex Heuer. Layla Halilbasic is our production assistant. The audio engineer is Aaron Doerr.
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