NDUB Language Center
With a view to upgrading the students’ oral and written competency in English, the NDUB Language Center (NDUB LC) was inaugurated on January 24, 2019 by Brian O’Conchubhair, PhD, the then Director at Centre for the Study of Languages and
About NDUB Language Center
With a view to upgrading the students’ oral and written competency in English, the NDUB Language Center (NDUB LC) was inaugurated on January 24, 2019 by Brian O’Conchubhair, PhD, the then Director at Centre for the Study of Languages and Cultures (CSLC), Associate Professor of Irish Language and Literature, University of Notre Dame, Indiana (USA), Maggie Vosters, Assistant Director, CSLC, and Lisa Joy Oglesbee, Coordinator of English for Academic Purposes, CSLC.
Under the directive guidance of Fr Tom McDermott, CSC, Director, NDUB LC was founded to help their proficiency in the language. The center is a free space where all members of the Notre Dame community can access resources, expert help, and curriculums devoted to bettering their reading, writing, listening, and speaking skills.
NDUB LC aims at helping individuals naturally nurture their communicative skills in English. Located on the NDUB campus, the Language Center offers multiple opportunities and resources to improve their listening skills, reading books to increase their reading skills and uplift oral fluency in English. Since its inception, the NDUB LC has organized free interactive workshops, seminars, academic counseling, peer-tutoring, and arranged free learning sessions on fundamentals of writing, and facilitated a free listening lab for NDUB students.
NDUB LC is free and open for all on weekdays (Sunday – Thursdays) from 10 am till 4 pm. Any member of the NDUB community who wants to enhance their language proficiency in terms of listening, speaking, reading, and writing in English can either book an appointment or simply drop by the center for queries.
Fr. Babu Paschal Sarker, C.S.C
Deputy Director, Language Center
Message of the Deputy Director
I encourage all students of NDUB to take advantage of the facilities and personnel of our new NDUB Language Center. Join with your friends to discuss the issues of today in the international language of business and politics. Prepare yourselves for the needs of the future by strengthening your fluency in English and find the joys of exploring the wider worlds of literature and media and joining the struggles of diverse peoples for justice and peace. See you at the Center!
Fr. Tom McDermott, CSC
Former Director, Language Center
Our Services to student
What we provide to our students
Listening Lab
Peer Tutoring
IELTS Prep
Panel Discussions
One on One Counseling Sessions
Seminars and Workshops
NDUB Language Center Library
The NDUB LC library offers a wide range of books on writing, research, and pedagogy. Excellent pieces of literature for the ones seeking reading for pleasure are also available here. It also has an online resource hub that enables the Notre Dame community to access free resources on their personal laptops, smartphones, and desktops. Students, teachers, and staff members of the institution can easily access these reading materials from the library upon visiting.
Short Courses
Designed specifically to meet individual needs, the short courses conducted by the NDUB LC offer 4-12 week courses on grammar, reading, writing, and spoken alongside literary topics. Interested individuals can drop by the NDUB LC to register for the offered courses free of cost, however, pre-registration is mandatory.
Get to know our NDUB Language Center Faculty Members
Faculty Members
Fr. Babu Paschal Sarker, C.S.C
Deputy Director, Language Center, NDUB
Fr. Babu Paschal Sarker, C.S.C., is a Roman Catholic monk from Sacred Heart of Jesus Province, Dhaka, Bangladesh, of the Congregation of Holy Cross. His official name is Babu Sarker, and his academic background has been shaped by a deep engagement with literature, philosophy, and pedagogy in various cultural and institutional settings. From his early education in Bangladesh to his advanced studies in the United States, he has studied English Literature and English not just as an intellectual discipline but also as a means to promote critical thinking, cultural awareness, and creative expression. His teaching and research adopt an interdisciplinary approach, drawing from literary studies, philosophy, and social critique, with a particular focus on issues of alienation, identity, history, and cultural displacement.
Fr. Sarker, right after completing his second Master of Arts in English at Indiana University South Bend (in December 2024), joined as a Lecturer, teaching in the Department of English at Notre Dame University Bangladesh (NDUB) as an adjunct faculty member in Spring 2025 and became a regular faculty member of the department in Fall 2025. During his studies, he strengthened his expertise in literary analysis, rhetoric, composition, and academic writing. Before this, he completed advanced coursework at the University of Notre Dame’s Center for the Study of Language and Culture (2021–2022), where he received significant pedagogical training in academic writing, presentation skills, grammar instruction, and literary studies, while also expanding his linguistic and cultural knowledge through courses in Hindi, Irish literature, and disability studies.
His earlier academic achievements include a Master of Arts in English from BRAC University (2019), a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy and Theology from Holy Spirit Major Seminary Institute of Philosophy and Theology (2015)—affiliated with Pontifical Urbaniana University, Rome—and a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature, History, and Social Welfare from Notre Dame College (2007)—affiliated with the National University of Bangladesh. These academic experiences, spanning multiple disciplines, have given him a unique perspective for understanding literature as both a cultural artifact and a tool for philosophical and social critique.
Habiba Akter
Program Director (Study Leave)
Habiba Akter has been with NDUB Language center since its inception in January, 2019. She has been working as the Program Director of the center after her return from the Center for the Study of Languages and Cultures (CSLC) at the University of Notre Dame, Indiana, USA. She was assigned with the duty to concretize her training and knowledge that she got from her yearlong stay at the CSLC through the establishment of NDUB Language Center under the supervision of Fr. Tom McDermott, CSC, the Director of the center.
She is also an Assistant Professor at the Department of English and one of the oldest faculty of NDUB. She is specialized in educational technology, teacher training, and leadership skills development. Her academic interests lie in educational technology, TESOL, pragmatics, semiotics, language planning and policy, classical and postcolonial literature. She has multiple publications in Edu-tech, semiotics, and postcolonial literature. She is a proud alumnus of the Dhaka University English Department.
Md. Waliullah was born in Lalmonirhat, Bangladesh and had his education in Lalmonirhat. He obtained the S.S.C degree from Rajshahi Board in 1991 and H.S.C degree from Lalmonirhat. After completing his (Hons) and Masters in English, he obtained specialized Masters from Dhaka University. He has completed B.A (Hons), M.A. and Masters in English from Dhaka University. He also passed the Non-Government Teachers Registration and Certification Authority(NTRCA). Md. Waliullah is also avid book writer with many academic books to his name. He has written some books on English such as: APEX English Literature, APEX English Pronunciation for Better Communication, APEX English for BCS Exam, APEX English for Medical Admission Test, APEX English for Varsity admission, APEX HSC English, A book for Listening and Speaking, APEX English Punctuation for Better Understanding, A Short Approach to Critical Thinking, APEX English for Formal Writing (USA & UK), A Brief History of Victorian Age & Literature.
Professor Golam Sarwar Chowdhury
Advisor
Professor Golam Sarwar Chowdhury started his academic career in 1981 as Lecturer in the Department of English, University of Chittagong, Bangladesh. In May, 2004, when he was Professor and Chair of the Department, Sarwar, as he is popularly known, moved to Dhaka, Bangladesh, to start working for the British Council Teaching Center as Trainer and Instructor of English as a Second Language. Sarwar joined the Department of English and Humanities, University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh as Professor in February 2010 where he taught until February 1, 2020.
Sarwar completed his MA in Studies in Literature at the University of Texas at Dallas with a Fulbright fellowship in 1990. His illustrious mentor Robert W Corrigan supervised his Master’s thesis and encouraged him to complete his Doctoral course work in the School of Arts and Humanities at the University of Texas at Dallas. Corrigan, famous for his scholarship on Anton Checkov, was also the Supervisor of the famous Performance Theorist Richard Schechner. Unfortunately Corrigan unexpectedly died in 1993 when Sarwar was on a summer visit to Bangladesh.
Sarwar’s areas of research and interest include American Theatre, Nineteenth Century Continental Theatre, Nineteenth Century American Literature, Twentieth Century American fiction, Performance Theory, Postmodern Theory, Postcolonial Theory, Feminist Theories, Diaspora Writing, History of Ideas, and ELT.
Sarwar moved on to Notre Dame University Bangladesh as Professor of English on February 2, 2020.
Yeassin Saha Nawaj Salim was assigned to the NDUB Language Center as Research Fellow on June 1, 2023. He is a Lecturer in the English Department at Notre Dame University Bangladesh. Salim has completed an MA in Applied Linguistics and ELT from Notre Dame University Bangladesh. In 2020, he earned a BA in English Language and Literature from the same university. He is also the Moderator of the NDUB English Club.
Cyril James Baptist
Senior Center Associate
Cyril James Baptist is a Senior Center Associate of the NDUB Language Center, appointed in February 2022. He completed his MA in Literature from Notre Dame University Bangladesh in 2023. He graduated with a BA in English Language and Literature from the same institution in 2020. His research interests are Feminism, Eco-Criticism and Creative Writing.
Romana Ruhin Ridi
Center Associate
Ridi has been appointed as the Center Associate of NDUB Language Center on March 1, 2024. She recently completed her BA in English Language and Literature from Notre Dame University Bangladesh in December 2023.
Previously, she volunteered as one of the peer tutors at the Language Center. She actively participates in extracurricular activities. She has served as the Treasurer of the NDUB English Club. Her research interests are Ecocriticism, Postmodernism, and Psychological criticism.
