Utah Foreign Language Association

Head to ufla.net to submit a proposal to present at our annual UFLA Conference at Weber State University on February 11, 2027! Conference registration will be coming soon, too!

We love to see the recognition of our awesome DLI programs!

French officials recognize 3 Utah schools for their dual-language French offerings French officials recently recognized three Utah schools with awards of excellence for their dual-language French programming.

Many UFLA members were able to show up to support three of our own, Anne Lair, Anna Hodgson, and Natalya Kuznetsova, The University of Utah language professors and recipients of the Dee Grant to help prepare for the Utah 2034 Olympic and Paraolympic Games (“The Olympics in the Curriculum: Fostering Intercultural Competence”).

These three university professors invited Darren Hughes, Vice President of Games Delivery for Salt Lake City 2034, to speak with faculty, staff, and students.
In the words of Anne Lair, Darren’s presentation, “Hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Games: Impact and Legacy,” was “both fascinating and inspiring. The wealth of information and statistics he shared gave us a much deeper understanding of the strategies being put in place to ensure that the 2034 Games leave a meaningful and lasting legacy for generations to come.”

We’re looking forward to continuing the conversation and preparation of language skills and intercultural competence as Utah prepares to welcome the world again!

What a weekend in Utah! We kicked it off with a UFLA Board Meeting at the State Capitol and dinner together at Salt & Olive (swipe to see photos at the end!). Meanwhile, Box Elder School District’s Chinese Immersion program participated in Brigham City’s Peach Days parade, and countless others - including some Board Members - attended the Brazilian Festival yesterday in Orem or the Greek Festival in Salt Lake City. The Greek Festival is still going on today, if you’d like to attend… and if you miss it, there’s the Italian Festival at The Gateway next weekend, plus Oktoberfest at Snowbird and Snowbasin!

Utah loves to celebrate world languages and cultures, and UFLA is excited for another year of supporting and ameliorating our programs and connections! Please tag us to let us know of other awesome things happening throughout the state that showcase Utah’s love of languages!

THE INAUGURAL ISSUE OF THE UFLA JOURNAL REQUESTS YOUR SUBMISSIONS! Please send all articles and questions to [email protected] by August 31st.

THE UFLA BOARD SEEKS A NEWSLETTER EDITOR TO COLLECT AND PRODUCE A DIGITAL NEWSLETTER EVERY FOUR MONTHS. This is a stipended position ($700/yr) and also includes some website updating and board meeting participation. Interested candidates should submit their qualifications and questions to [email protected] ASAP.

One of my favorite things about world language educators in summer is following along as they, and often their students, visit the locations they love and practice their languages in context. Most members of the UFLA Board enjoyed a memorable summer full of travel and connection far and wide, but UFLA President Jody Lindsay didn’t have to journey far to meet with members of Utah’s American Sign Language (ASL) community at the Robert G. Sanderson Community Center of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing in Taylorsville, Utah on July 31st.

Jody says: “I had the absolute thrill of being surrounded by dozens of Utah ASL teachers at their summer professional learning conference. The energy, expertise, creativity, and genuine commitment to students in that room were incredible.

As President of UFLA, I am continually reminded that our language educators are doing far more than teaching a language. They are creating opportunities for students to communicate, connect, and demonstrate what they can actually do.

Utah ASL teachers, thank you for letting me be a small part of your day. Your commitment to students is inspiring.“

Wanda Pillow, Dean of the College of Humanities at the University of Utah, was one of UFLA’s awardees at our March Annual Conference, but was unable to attend in person. UFLA Board members and U of U colleagues got together this month to present the award to her. Congratulations, Dean Pillow, and all of our other awardees (scroll to see a photo of more from the conference)! Our Board thanks you for your contribution to our profession (see the last photo of many of our Board members).

If you’d like to see more images from our recent conference, check out our Instagram story highlight.

We had such an amazing annual conference with top-tier presenters and colleagues gathered to learn and celebrate together. We’re still riding the high… and current UFLA President and Alpine SD World Language Specialist Jody Lindsay is making sure to keep up the forward momentum!

Jody was recently invited by Nebo SD to continue the advocacy work sparked during her UFLA presentation—centering how we amplify the impact of world language programs for students, schools, and communities.

When educators come together like this, we don’t just share ideas—we build stronger, more connected futures for our Utah learners. 🌍

Our excellent Best of Utah session that we sent to , starring (Alpine School District, French), and some more fantastic Utah teachers (of Portuguese)!

UFLA showed up for the SWCOLT Conference this weekend at the Denver Omni Interlaken! The keynote was amazing, and the sessions are, too! We’re excited for one more day of connecting and reaching new heights together before heading home to Utah to prepare for our own Annual Convention at Utah Valley University on March 12th!