Dear Colleague:

American Councils for International Education is currently accepting applications for the 2012 Intensive Summer Language Institutes Program taking place next summer in Alexandria, Egypt and Changchun, China. The March 2nd application deadline is fast approaching! This program provides fully funded fellowships for U.S. classroom teachers to spend six weeks overseas studying intermediate and advanced-level Arabic and Chinese, and hence is only for non-native speakers of the target languages. The Intensive Summer Language Institutes are funded by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State and implemented by American Councils for International Education. The ISLI program is open to current K-12 teachers and community college instructors of Arabic and Mandarin Chinese, as well as to students enrolled in education programs who intend to teach these languages.

Participants in the Intensive Summer Language Institutes receive ten hours of graduate credit through Bryn Mawr College. Previous program participants have thrived on the Summer Language Institutes’ many opportunities for curriculum building and professional development. The sites in China (Northeast Normal University) and Egypt (Alexandria University), are highly conducive to language learning and provide numerous activities to encourage language acquisition through cultural immersion. In addition to daily intensive language training, participants enjoy cultural activities and excursions designed to reinforce classroom material. Returned alumni are eligible for additional funding for relevant follow-on activities that promote program goals.

The program application, benefits, and detailed application instructions are located online at http://www.americancouncils.org/isli. In addition to the online form, applicants are asked to provide official transcripts, two reference letters, and two medical forms. All materials are due on March 2, 2012.