UST alumna and adjunct professor Rose Mary Salum teaches classes in bilingual journalism and is the founder of the bilingual literary magazine Literal. These two undertakings allow her to address a gap she saw between Latin American and English literature and journalism. In the process she serves both the University and the Houston community.

“I realized that here in the U.S. there was a lack of knowledge of what was being produced in Latin America,” Salum says. “I then realized that this was also occurring in Latin America. People down there are not aware of the quality of artists this country is producing, so I came up with this idea of building a bridge between countries to promote tolerance. This is the mission of Literal.”

The magazine, which focuses on current issues, arts and literature, is distributed in both Mexico and the U.S.

Salum attempts to connect the worlds of English and Spanish language journalism through the bilingual print media and broadcasting classes she teaches at UST. She creates a real world experience in the classroom by inviting journalists to speak and having students create a newspaper, magazine or documentary at the end of the semester.

Three of her former students, Veronica Diaz, Ivan Navarro and Dorina Carrillo-Gamboa, had their articles published in Somos Colombia, a Spanish-language newspaper that targets the Latin American population living in the Houston area.

Diaz wrote about the anniversary of the March 11, 2004 terrorist attacks in Spain; Navarro’s article focused on the PBS showing of the documentary “Semana Santa;” and Carrillo-Gamboa wrote about the success of the “Masterpieces of French Painting” from the Metropolitan Museum of Art that was on display at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston.

In addition to directing Literal magazine and teaching classes, Salum finds time to write literature. Her short story “El Agua que Mece el Silencio” (The Water that Rocks the Silence) was chosen as a finalist for the XIX Premio Ana María Matute de Relatos de Mujeres, an award named for acclaimed international writer Ana María Matute.

Salum was also recognized at the 2006 UST Alumnae Fashion Show for her volunteer efforts.