“Spending time out of the United States and learning foreign languages have been instrumental in shaping my worldview and my academic path at Middlebury. Participating in the Language in Motion program through the Office of Community Engagement has given me the chance to combine my love for languages and intercultural exchange with my interest in education. LiM facilitates connections between Middlebury College students who have had international experiences, through study abroad, summer programs, gap years, or by virtue of being international students, with secondary school students in Vermont. It gives Middlebury students the chance to make their abroad experiences meaningful in new ways and to reflect on how the insight they have gained through their international experiences can be valuable to the larger Middlebury community. Midd students participating in LiM go through training to plan and give presentations to high school and middle school students in the area on an aspect of their international experience. Topics range from superstitions in Russia to foods of Spain to life in Ethiopia.

In addition to presentations, we just hosted the second annual study abroad fair at Middlebury Union High School to give students access to resources on high school study abroad and gap year opportunities. We are working on exciting new programming for this spring including “language days,” through which we hope to bring high school language classes to Middlebury to experience language tables and the atmosphere of Middlebury language-learning. It has been immensely rewarding for me to get to share my experiences and love for languages with students in the larger Middlebury community through presentations, and to learn more about other cultures in helping other Midd students plan their presentations.”