Paola Buckley honored by the French Republic with Ordre des Palmes académiques

The award was presented September 30 by Frank Marchetti, Consul General of France in Houston, during a ceremony at the Alliance Française of Dallas.

Since joining SMU in 2003, Buckley has focused on connecting French language and culture with students’ academic, professional and international experiences. Her work has included developing internship opportunities in Dallas and abroad, leading the SMU-in-France and SMU-in-Paris study abroad programs, and establishing an academic exchange partnership with PSL University in Paris.

Dedman College spoke with Buckley about the recognition, the experiences that shaped her career and what she hopes students gain from studying another language and culture.

What does receiving the Ordre des Palmes académiques mean to you personally and professionally?

It’s a great honor to be recognized by the French Republic with the Ordre des Palmes académiques. I am grateful, touched, and inspired by this award. 

Can you tell us about the work or contributions that led to this recognition?

Since 2003, I have taught at SMU with a goal that has guided much of my work: to make the study of French language and culture relevant to our students and to help them become citizens in the world, of the world, and for the world.

This commitment has led me to create opportunities that extend language learning beyond the classroom and connect it to students’ academic, professional, and global experiences. In Dallas, I established an internship program that allows our students to put their French language skills to work in professional settings. To create these opportunities, I developed partnerships with French and Francophone businesses and organizations, including the Alliance Française of Dallas and the European American Chamber of Commerce.

I have also worked to expand these opportunities internationally through partnerships with academic institutions abroad that allow our students to participate in semester-long and summer internships. In the classroom, I teach courses such as French for Business and Business and Culture of Provence, which similarly connect language and cultural knowledge to real-world professional and intercultural contexts.

Another contribution has been the establishment of a testing center at SMU where students can take the Diplôme de Français Professionnel, a French government exam that certifies professional proficiency in French. This gives students a way to validate the skills they develop through their studies with a recognized professional credential.

Together, these efforts reflect what I have always hoped to accomplish through my teaching: to show students that learning a language is not simply about mastering words and grammar; it is about opening professional opportunities, developing cultural understanding, and forming meaningful connections.

How has French language, culture or education shaped your academic and professional career?

I grew up in New York City, in midtown; my parents were Italians ex-pats who were transferred to the city for work. They decided to enroll me in the Lycée Français since the schooling was more familiar to them then the American system. They stayed in the city, and I stayed at the Lycée. 

My experience at the Lycée shaped my entire future. My classmates were from Cameroon, Belgium, Tunisia, Italy, the U.S., Gabon, Lebanon and many other countries. What bound us together was a common language: French. Each additional language you spoke meant that you could communicate with more people.

Never one to shy away from a conversation, I realized that speaking another language opens the door to friendships, experiences, and insights into other cultures.   

What first sparked your interest in your field, and how has that interest evolved throughout your career?

Languages have been at the center of my professional life from the very beginning. After college, I worked at the United Nations in New York, where I learned to appreciate the vital role that language plays in professional, political and cultural exchanges. I then worked as a French and Italian interpreter for the U.S. Department of State, an experience that deepened my appreciation for the importance of language in diplomacy, communication, and cross-cultural understanding.

When my family and I moved to Dallas in 2001, my professional path evolved in a new and very rewarding direction. Since joining SMU in 2003, I have had the opportunity to share my passion for languages with students and, over the years, my interest has expanded from language itself to the many possibilities that language can open to students.

I strive to make the study of French relevant beyond the classroom - to connect language with culture, professional opportunities, international experiences, and meaningful engagement with our local and international communities. Ultimately, my goal is to help students see themselves not simply as students of a language, but as citizens in the world, of the world, and for the world.

What do you hope students take away from studying French language and culture?

What I hope students take away from studying French language and culture is more than the ability to speak another language. I hope they develop a genuine curiosity about other ways of seeing the world. I hope they learn to understand perspectives that may be different from their own and recognize that there is often more than one way to navigate the world around us.

When students learn another language and culture, they gain not only a new way to communicate but also a new way to think. They discover that language carries history, values, humor, traditions, and ways to connect with one another on a deeper level. And through that discovery, I hope they become more open, more empathetic, and more willing to engage with the world around them.

Is there anything about receiving this distinction or the work behind it that you think is important for people to understand?

It is critical to continue looking outward - to remain curious about the world and to help prepare our students to be citizens of that world.

This is why I believe so deeply in the study of languages and in the power of cultural exchange. When we learn another language, when we spend time in another country, when we listen to and learn from people whose experiences are different from our own, we see the world - and often ourselves - in new ways.