Who We Are

“It is the mission of the Alliance of World Languages to provide a forum to study languages and their cultures and to promote them. To address these issues we will involve the community, parents, administrators and we will collaborate with area schools.”

Who are we?

The Alliance of World Languages is a collaborative organization of world language teachers from D.C. Everest, Marathon, Merrill, Mosinee, Newman Catholic, Wausau, University of Wisconsin-Marathon County and North Central Technical College. In the fall of 2003 we wrote and received a grant from the Judd S. Alexander Foundation, the Community Foundation of North Central Wisconsin, the World of Difference Fund, and the D.C. Everest and Wausau School districts, to study how we might “strengthen the teaching of world languages in our respective schools.”

What do we believe?

In today’s increasingly global community, the concept of being “well-spoken” has taken on an entirely new meaning. The need to communicate, understand and do business with people and cultures where English is not the primary language is becoming a high priority for more and more Americans. We recognize that there are academic, social and economic benefits to gaining proficiency in English as well as other languages.

Our projects to date:

• Observing stellar elementary, middle school and high school language programs in Menasha, Wisconsin

• Starting “Study Buddy”classes (parent/child language classes in French, German and Spanish) in conjunction with UWMC-Continuing Education

• Organizing a “Community Celebration of Languages” in April 0f 2005 with a program featuring State Superintendent Elizabeth Burmaster, Paul Sandrock, World Language Consultant for the Department of Public Instruction, Dwight Davis, CEO and President of Greenheck Fan Corporation  SLIDESHOW HERE

• Attending the International Education Council and giving a presentation about the Alliance of World Languages to this state group. We were accompanied by Kris Gilmore, Superintendent of the D.C. Everest schools.

• Organizing a “Dialogue” about languages in November or 2005 to promote area language learning opportunities for adults and children

• Starting “Conversation Groups” in French and German based on the successful Spanish group, which has been meeting for many years

Professional development for teachers:

o January, 2006-A presentation on the European Union by Jeff Leigh, professor of History at UWMC

o September, 2006-We visited with a cross-section of individuals from Greenheck Fan Corporation’s international division and listened to their views and experience on language and language training for business

o April, 2006- “Making Students Comfortable in Foreign Language Classes,” by Sally Magnan, professor of French at UW-Madison and Director of the Language Institute

o Fall, 2007-Janet Newman, Vice President for Learning at NTC will join us with her presentation, “ Inspired, Connected and Strengthened,” a talk promoting the benefits of international experiences for all students

Contacting us……………

If you would like more information on the world language programs at our
participating schools, or if you would like to contact a world language teacher
at one of the schools, please consult the following websites:

D.C. Everest www.dce.k12.wi.us
Marathon www.marathon.k12.wi.us
Merrill www.maps.k12.wi.us
Mosinee http://mosineeschools.org/
Newman Catholic www.newmancatholicschools.com
North Central Tech. College www.northcentral.tec.wi.us
UWMC www.uwmc.uwc.edu
Wausau www.wausau.k12.wi.us
 

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