Donde te duele?

It was the Saturday after Christmas when Anita Nadal came into her office, in the School of World Studies at VCU, to catch up on some work. The piercing siren of a nearby fire truck caught her attention.

As a Spanish instructor liason to the city of Richmond, Nadal said her first thought was, “I bet they could use some Spanish classes.”

Nadal immediately e-mailed the Richmond chief of police with the proposal and received a response within minutes. The chief said he had been waiting for a program like this. Within a few weeks, Nadal was teaching three Spanish language classes to firefighters and emergency response technicians, with each class averaging 15 students each.

The city of Richmond hired Nadal through the VCU Division of Community Engagement. The city pays for one credit hour per student.

Batalion Chief Bobby Duffus said he is excited to see the effects of the program in the community.

“I can’t tell you the amount of times it would have helped if we knew Spanish,” Duffus said.

Duffus said he and other enjoy taking part in the fast-paced, hands-on learning environment that provides practical conversational applications.

“You can almost turn around and use it on the street the very day you learn it,” Duffus said.

According to the most recent census, Richmond’s Latino population increased 167 percent between 1990 and 2000, and population estimates since 2000 indicate that the has trend continued.

Duffus said the growing minority population in Southside has posed a bigger need to bring down language barriers. He said these tools can help officers respond to an emergency more quickly and help officers seem less intimidating.

Battalion Chief David Pulliam said this effort would help build trust with the community.

Pullman said this effort shows “regardless of who you are or the language you speak, if you live in Richmond, you’re included.”

The Spanish language classes are the first phase of a multiphase effort in Southside to reach out to the minority community. Duffus said the next phase would include education on cultural awareness.

Nadal said, “I really feel that this work is actually life-saving. Now they can go to Latino homes and say, ‘donde te duele.’ “