New Focus for CLA Language Outreach in 2015

The University of Minnesota's College of Liberal Arts is reshaping its language outreach programming and will not be hosting World Language Day (WLD) in 2015. We are thankful for the thousands of high school students and hundreds of teachers who attended WLD between 2004 and 2014. The WLD planning and instructional team, and the units that support the event, have valued this partnership with Minnesota high schools.

As part of the changes in our language outreach, we want to update you on three new major language-related projects and programs underway that will enhance language education at the university and in the state.

• Chinese Flagship: The University of Minnesota is now one of twelve United States universities offering a Chinese Language Flagship Program. The Flagship grant provides resources to expand language learning opportunities and intensive experiences to undergraduate students.


• PACE Project: The Proficiency Assessment for Curricular Enhancement (PACE) project will provide an integrated program of language assessment and continual curricular improvement for students of French, German, Korean, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish with a goal of helping move all students to higher stages of language proficiency.


• Spanish Certificate: The Certificate of Advanced-Level Proficiency in Spanish is a new option for students who are interested in achieving advanced-level proficiency in Spanish, and having their skills formally recognized.

With the increased focus on connecting K-12 outreach on new programs and integration into CLA Showcases, we believe we can provide more enriched and ongoing experiences. We also invite teachers of all languages to consider a group campus tour for their students.

The University of Minnesota remains committed to K-12 outreach and language promotion. Please email elsie@umn.edu if you have questions about languages at the University of Minnesota.