When Ashley Artim first came to Seton Hill, she chose to major in Cybersecurity because of the wide range of job opportunities available after college. She changed her minor in Spanish to a second major because of the benefits of speaking a second language in social and professional settings. 

Ashley is completing an internship with Kiva, a nonprofit microlending organization. Kiva’s mission is to aid the underserved in accessing financial opportunities. As part of her internship, Ashley translates Spanish language loan requests. She is also researching the effects of artificial intelligence (AI) on language translation services with the company. 

At this stage in Ashley’s research, she is debating if the benefits of AI programs, such as ChatGPT, outweigh the negatives. The positives include providing open access to translation services. However, there may no longer be a necessity for human translators with increased AI services. 

“All of the learning that I have done in my Spanish major has been applicable to this internship.”

“Language is something that can connect people around the globe, and offer opportunities to appreciate and understand other cultures,” said Ashley. “Without taking the time to learn other languages, and simply rely on a computer for this work, it takes out the human aspect. We could eventually lose the importance of language as a cultural idea.” 

While conducting her research, Ashley has gained insight into the state of cultural, economic, and social conditions in Central and South America. She met Kiva borrowers and learned about their personal experiences and passions for the future. Through these interactions, she learned about students who want to raise money to attend college, women who dream of starting their own companies, and the impact of bitcoin on El Salvador’s economy after it became a national currency. 

Ashley credits the instruction of Seton Hill Spanish professors Judith Reyna and Debra Faszer-McMahon  for her knowledge of the Spanish language and culture. “They have both been monumental in my growth as a Spanish speaker,” said Ashley. “All of the learning that I have done in my Spanish major has been applicable to this internship.”