A petition organized by several language department faculty members advocating against suspending or merging language classes following July state legislation went live Wednesday night. The following afternoon, many of those same faculty hosted the IU Language Fest in the Global and International Studies building atrium.
French professor Nicolas Valazza was one of the progenitors of the petition and movement, and hung a sign reading “Save the Languages at IU” across from the French info stand he manned during the festival.
A sign reads "Save the Languages at IU!" in the Global and International Studies Building August 21, 2025. IU language department faculty started a petition called "Save the Languages" to advocate against reducing language programs at IU.
“The purpose was really to make students aware of what’s going on, because they’ve been left out of all the discussions about eliminations and mergers,” Valazza said in an interview Thursday.
Many programs affected by the new legislation fall within the language department. Undergraduate degree programs are now required to produce at least 15 graduates per year, and graduate programs 10.
Germanic Studies department chair Johannes Türk said degree programs in more obscure languages and international studies should not be held to the same standards as traditionally large departments.
“Only one University — The University of Michigan, to my knowledge — has a German program that has more than an average of 15 graduating B.A.’s per year in the whole nation,” Türk said. “So, should German be only taught at Michigan? No. That’s not how it works.”
The University of Michigan was the only Big Ten school with more than 15 German bachelor's degrees awarded for the 2023-24 academic year, according to data reviewed by the Indiana Daily Student.
One other report found 10 universities, including those outside of the Big Ten, awarded more than 15 degrees in Germanic Languages, Literatures and Linguistics in 2023, IU Bloomington not among them.
Still, IU is well-known, even internationally, for its diverse array of language program offerings. The language department’s home page boasts more than 70 languages offered, more than any other American university.
Valazza, who himself grew up in Switzerland, worries the policy changes may affect future enrollment — and future faculty hires.
“It went in the national news, so everybody is aware of what's going on at IU. And unfortunately, I’ve already had much feedback about people, especially graduate students, reluctant to come to IU because of what's going on,” he said. “It's not something that I promote because I think that we need more than ever critical numbers, and I want people to come here. But I'm afraid that’s the effect.”
Some language programs at IU are the only ones of their kind, such as the three-level Estonian program unparalleled in any other American university. Piibi-kai Kivik, an Estonian native and professor of the language, says prospective international students from smaller countries sometimes only know of IU due to its offering of their language.
“Students write to me who studied with me, you know, 10 years ago and more than that. And this is how Indiana University is known outside of Indiana, of the country, outside of the US,” she said. “Our linguistics, our languages. This is how people in Estonia, for example, know Indiana University.”
But some professors aren’t hitting the panic button yet. Türk said much of IU’s communication and coverage by local and national media failed to address the more complex elements of the plan, such as many degrees — especially in foreign languages — being merged as opposed to fully eliminated.
This has left many students and parents scrambling to find out what will happen to their degree, and whether they’ll be able to graduate.
“We now have to defend ourselves from the rumor that things are unstable, that departments might no longer exist,” Türk said. “So even if that doesn't happen, in a sense that influences peoples’ thinking.”
Türk said there is no real instability in the department; more accurately, an unease as to what the future may look like. The department still has to determine which degrees will be merged and how to navigate the departmental shifts. But students already enrolled in affected programs will still be able to complete their degrees, he said, and most previously offered classes will still be taught.
Valazza said there has been no communication from top administration — the president, provost and chancellor — but administration in the Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies has been in constant communication regarding what lies ahead.
It remains unclear exactly what will become of language programs at IU, but Valazza and other faculty members are committed to “saving the languages.”
“[We are] panicked. Confused. Insecure. Angry,” he said. “But also determined to save what we have and to keep promoting foreign language education.”
Editor's note: This story was updated to remove a duplicated word.
CLARIFICATION: This story has been updated to clarify that University of Michigan was the only Big Ten School to award more than 15 German bachelor's degrees in the 2023-24 academic year, and that a DataUSA report showed 10 institutions nationwide awarded more than 15 degrees in the category of "Germanic Languages, Literatures and Linguistics."
