Phl language course pushed at Princeton

Filipino students at Ivy League university Princeton are calling for the introduction of a Filipino language course, citing the need to meet student demand and better reflect the cultural demographics of the United States.

In November 2024, the Princeton Filipino Community (PFC) organized the inaugural Filipino Ivy League (FIL) Conference to advocate for a Tagalog course at the university. It garnered over 100 Filipino students from other Ivy League Schools, with approximately 40 attendees from Princeton.

Among the issues addressed during the conference was the challenge many second-generation Filipino-Americans face in maintaining fluency in their native language due to the pressure to adapt to American culture.

In an opinion piece published in The Daily Princetonian, first-year student Cathleen Balid urged the university to offer a Filipino language program, following the university’s announcement in November of the Haitian Creole course set to start in August or September this year or in early 2026.

“Filipino students who have the same desire deserve the same consideration from the university,” wrote Balid, emphasizing also the need for the university to align with other Ivy League institutions that have introduced Tagalog language courses.

While the university offers a Filipino class through a summer-based, virtual program called the Less-Commonly Taught Language initiative, Balis said this “barely scratches the surface” as it is only held weekly and virtually. The article also argued that the demand for a Tagalog course is about representation, identity, and cultural pride.

Filipino is one of the most spoken languages in the United States, with nearly two million speakers. In New Jersey, where Princeton is located, the Filipino population is estimated at 150,000, while New York is home to around 240,000 Filipinos. Filipinos make up the third-largest Asian-American group, with 4.1-million individuals.

“Adding Filipino as a language at the university not only strengthens a route for Filipino and Filipino-American students to connect with their culture but also legitimizes the area of study and creates opportunities for those outside the community to be immersed in it,” Balid emphasized.

To date, Princeton offers courses in languages such as Turkish and Ge’ez, an extinct Ethiopian language. Other Ivy League universities including Harvard, Yale, Cornell, and the University of Pennsylvania have established Filipino language courses.