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Community-Based Heritage Language Schools Conference

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2023 Community-Based Heritage Language Schools Conference Reflecting on the Past and Moving into the Future

This conference is for program directors and administrators of community-based heritage language schools; members of the language communities involved in these schools; and directors and leaders in public, private, and charter schools who are interested in working with community-based heritage language schools.

2023 In-person and Virtual Options

Friday, October 13, 2023 - 1:00 p.m. to 6:15 p.m. EDT
Saturday, October 14, 2023 - 10:00 a.m. to 5:45 p.m. EDT

This conference aims to:

  1. Build partnerships among and across community-based heritage language schools and determine arenas for future action
  2. Help schools create, strengthen, and build their school structures and activities
  3. Make clear the importance of community-based heritage language schools in the language learning landscape and in the lives of language communities in the United States
  4. Develop information about community-based heritage language schools through a national survey of schools
  5. Share and make available resources that will be helpful to schools

Conference Schedule

Important Links

Schedule Overview

Friday, October 13

(Eastern Time)
12:00 to 1:00 p.m. - Participant Check-in
1:00 to 1:30 p.m. – Conference Opening

Saturday, October 14

(Eastern Time)
9:45 to 10:00 a.m. - Participant Check-in

Conference Plenary Speakers:

Telling the Stories of Community-Based Language Schools in the United States

  • Shuhan Wang, Ph.D., ELE Consulting International; Chinese Language Education, Asia Society

Supporting Sustainable Less Commonly Taught Community-Based Language Programs

  • Felix Kronenberg, Ph.D, National LCTL Resource Center 

Motivating Students to Continue Language Development With the Seal of Biliteracy

  • Kristin Davin, Ph.D., University of North Carolina- Charlotte

Workshops for Teachers and Administrators:

  • Features of High-Quality Instruction
  • Using Technology in Instruction
  • Building Extensive Reading Practices in the Classroom

  • Early Childhood Education and Language Learning

  • Empowerment Through Collaboration: Motivating and Supporting HL Teachers

  • Engaging Teachers of Community-based Schools in Professional Development and Growth Opportunities

  • Administering a Heritage Language School:Successfully Leading a Team of Professionals and Volunteers

  • Creating Outreach Materials to Raise Awareness

Registration is now open for the 2023 Community-Based Heritage Language Schools Conference. Register Here!

The following languages have been represented at the conference in previous years. The National Coalition of Community-Based Language Schools has language representatives for each of these languages who are closely engaged with practitioners working in community-based heritage language programs in their language community and are interested in making connections with other language groups. Language respresentatives serve as liaisons, creating connections between their language community and the work of the Coalition. Check out the Coalition website to learn more about the language representatives and their responsibilities.

Languages represented include:

  • American Sign Language
  • Amharic (Ethiopia)
  • Arabic
  • Bulgarian
  • Chinese
  • Czech/Slovak
  • Farsi
  • French
  • German
  • Greek
  • Hindi   
  • Hungarian
  • Italian
  • Japanese
  • Lithuanian
  • Korean
  • Polish
  • Portuguese
  • Spanish
  • Tamil
  • Urdu
  • Vietnamese

The 2023 Community-Based Heritage Language Schools Conference is hosted as a collaboration between the American University Institute for Innovation in Education and the Coalition for Community-Based Heritage Language Schools.

If you are interested in sponsoring the conference, please contact Danielle Sodani: dgsodani@american.edu.

 

2022 Keynote Address

Translanguaging Pedagogy in Community-Based Language Schools

59:32

Ofelia Garcia, Ph.D., Professor Emerita, Urban Education; Latin American, Iberian, and Latino Cultures (LAILAC), Graduate Center of the City University of New York (CUNY)

Conference Resources

Our presenters have genrously agreed to share their presentations and recordings of their sessions. 

Please note if you do not see a video listed, the recording is not available. 

 

Conference Planning Team

Coalition for Community-Based Heritage Language Schools
Masako Douglas, Professor of Japanese, California State University, Long Beach; Curriculum Advisor, Oranage Coast Gakuen Japanese Language School

Ana Lucia Lico, Co-Founder and Board Member, Brazilian Association for Culture and Education (ABRACE)

Renate Ludanyi, Ph.D., President, German Language School Conference, United States

Tommy Lu, Department Chair of Information Technologies, Delaware Technical Community College; Advisor, Washington Metropolitan Association of Chinese Schools (WMACS)

Marta McCabe, President, Czech and Slovak School of North Carolina; Program Coordinator, English for International Students, Duke University Graduate School

Joy Kreeft Peyton, Conference Chair, Senior Fellow, Center for Applied Linguistics

American University

Mavissa Beach, Program Coordinator, Institute of Innovation in Education, American University, School of Education

Mark Forsberg, Program Coordinator, Community-Based Heritage Language Schools Conference

Danielle Gervais Sodani, Director, Institute of Innovation in Education, American University, School of Education