Yale is proud to support its language faculty and students with one of the best-equipped and most extensively staffed centers of its kind in the world. The size of the CLS staff fluctuates as we complete current projects and begin new ones, but we have about 16 full-time or part-time staff members and 5-10 student employees.

Because the CLS's mission is to strengthen Yale's language programs through leadership and support in a wide variety of areas, it can take some time to become familiar with the Center, its staff and resources, and the services that pertain to you. Those who are new to Yale--or who would just like to hear more about the CLS--are welcome to contact the Director, Associate Director, or any of the staff to arrange an introduction and tour.

For more information about contacting individual staff members, see our CLS Staff page.

Director

Nelleke Van Deusen-Scholl (Ph.D. Linguistics, University of Florida) is Director of the Center for Language Study, Director of Language Study, and Adjunct Professor of Linguistics at Yale University. Her research interests focus on sociolinguistics and foreign language education, with a specific emphasis on heritage language learning and the role of technology in language teaching and learning. She provides leadership and coordination for all aspects of foreign language teaching and learning across the University; works closely with faculty, students and senior administrators to address the issues and needs of Yale’s foreign language programs, including staffing and curricula; and tracks national and international trends and developments in language study. In addition, Nelleke is Yale's primary representative to the international language education community, promoting awareness of Yale's language study activities among professional organizations, other institutions of higher education, and consortia. Her research interests focus on sociolinguistics and foreign language education, with a specific emphasis on heritage language learning and the role of technology in language teaching and learning, and she is Review Editor for the Heritage Language Journal.

Teaching, Learning, and Research

The staff of the Teaching, Learning, and Research group is responsible for:

Cultivating consistent, professional relationships with faculty and staff in foreign language programs by serving as liaisons between designated programs and the CLS.
Development of special programs and language study opportunities.
Promotion of organizational coherence among language programs.
Initiation, management, and support of grant-funded special projects.
Professional development and instructional technology guidance, through presentations, workshops, trainings, coaching, seminars, teacher development grants, and other initiatives for faculty and teaching fellows.
Pedagogical guidance and support.
Instructional and curricular innovation, including the IIG Competition.
Needs assessment and support strategy for non-routine faculty projects.
Project management, budgeting, intellectual property, and copyright guidance for faculty.
Leadership and support for initiatives in SLA research, placement testing, language for special purposes, Language Across the Curriculum, and publishing of pedagogical materials.
Development of documentation for use by faculty.
The Foreign Language Tutoring and Conversation Exchange Partner Program.
The DILS program, through which students can study languages not otherwise offered at Yale
Development of new language study opportunities for professional school students.
Foreign Language Requirement testing for languages not offered by a university department or area studies council.
Resources and guidance to students regarding the Foreign Language Requirement and other aspects of language study at Yale.
Budget, expenses, data collection, evaluation, and reporting for a variety of programs.
Public relations initiatives.

Learn more about the Teaching, Learning, and Research group's faculty liaisons.

Technology & Project Development

The technicians and software developers of the Technology & Project Development group, led by Interim Manager Trip Kirkpatrick, are responsible for:

Configuration, maintenance, and security of classroom and lab facilities, including the Faculty Development Lab, Student Multimedia Lab, Multimedia Classroom/Labs, and six language classrooms.
The Reception Desk.
Equipment Loans.
Service Requests, including media duplication and format conversion.
Distribution of foreign language audio and video materials.
Support for technology-assisted testing.
Conducting digital audio recordings in the Recording Studio.
Design and development of instructional and administrative software.
Research of new technologies and foreign language software.
Administration of web, file, print, and database servers.
Development of technical documentation for use by technology support staff.
Collaboration with technology specialists across the university.

Business Operations

Under the direction of Jeanne Leiner, the Director of Business Operations, the staff is responsible for:

Administrative functions.
Financial functions.
HR functions including hiring & payroll.
Purchasing functions.
Facilities management.
Security.

More Information

For more about what the CLS has to offer, browse around our web site, stop by and visit, or contact the Director or any member of the staff to arrange a tour.