National Security Language Initiative

[Rodney K Hopson]

Gosh, hate to be utterly cynical and a tad bit truthful, but I'd imagine
those "other" languages are those that serve the national security
interests of the current administration and the right-wing considering the
war on terror campaign.

On Tue, 10 Jan 2006, francisco gomes de matos wrote:

> What OTHER languages  are included, Harold ? How can we find out ? The text
> mentions OTHER LANGUAGES....
> I´m curious.
> Francisco Gomes de Matos,Recife,Brazil
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Harold F. Schiffman" <haroldfs at ccat.sas.upenn.edu>
> To: "Language Policy-List" <lgpolicy-list at ccat.sas.upenn.edu>
> Sent: Tuesday, January 10, 2006 12:30 PM
> Subject: National Security Language Initiative
>
>
> > January 5, 2006
> >
> > National Security Language Initiative
> >
> > Briefing by Dina Powell, Assistant Secretary of State for Education and
> > Cultural Affairs and Barry Lowenkron, Assistant Secretary of State for
> > Democracy, Human Rights and Labor
> >
> > President Bush today launched the National Security Language Initiative
> > (NSLI), a plan to further strengthen national security and prosperity in
> > the 21st century through education, especially in developing foreign
> > language skills. The NSLI will dramatically increase the number of
> > Americans learning critical need foreign languages such as Arabic,
> > Chinese, Russian, Hindi, Farsi, and others through new and expanded
> > programs from kindergarten through university and into the workforce. The
> > President will request $114 million in FY07 to fund this effort.
> >
> > An essential component of U.S. national security in the post-9/11 world is
> > the ability to engage foreign governments and peoples, especially in
> > critical regions, to encourage reform, promote understanding, convey
> > respect for other cultures and provide an opportunity to learn more about
> > our country and its citizens. To do this, we must be able to communicate
> > in other languages, a challenge for which we are unprepared.
> >
> > Deficits in foreign language learning and teaching negatively affect our
> > national security, diplomacy, law enforcement, intelligence communities
> > and cultural understanding. It prevents us from effectively communicating
> > in foreign media environments, hurts counter-terrorism efforts, and
> > hamstrings our capacity to work with people and governments in
> > post-conflict zones and to promote mutual understanding. Our business
> > competitiveness is hampered in making effective contacts and adding new
> > markets overseas. To address these needs, under the direction of the
> > President, the Secretaries of State, Education and Defense and the
> > Director of National Intelligence have developed a comprehensive national
> > plan to expand U.S.  foreign language education beginning in early
> > childhood and continuing throughout formal schooling and into the
> > workforce, with new programs and resources.
> >
> > The agencies will also seek to partner with institutions of learning,> > foundations and the private sector to assist in all phases of
this
> > initiative, including partnering in the K-16 language studies, and
> > providing job opportunities and incentives for graduates of these
> > programs.
> >
> >
> > The National Security Language Initiative has three broad goals:
> >
> >
> > Expand the number of Americans mastering critical need languages and start
> > at a younger age by:
> >
> > Providing $24 million to create incentives to teach and study critical
> > need languages in K-12 by re-focusing the Department of Educations Foreign
> > Language Assistance Program (FLAP) grants.
> >
> > Building continuous programs of study of critical need languages from
> > kindergarten to university through a new $27 million program, which will
> > start in 27 schools in the next year through DODs NSEP program and the
> > Department of Education, and will likely expand to additional schools in
> > future years.
> >
> > Providing State Department scholarships for summer, academic year/semester
> > study abroad, and short-term opportunities for high school students
> > studying critical need languages to up to 3,000 high school students by
> > summer 2009.
> >
> > Expanding the State Department Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching
> > Assistant Program, to allow 300 native speakers of critical need languages
> > to come to the U.S. to teach in U.S. universities and schools in 2006-07.
> > Establishing a new component in States Teacher Exchange Programs to
> > annually assist 100 U.S. teachers of critical need languages to study
> > abroad.
> >
> > Establishing DNI language study "feeder" programs, grants and initiatives
> > with K-16 educational institutions to provide summer student and teacher
> > immersion experiences, academic courses and curricula, and other resources
> > for foreign language education in less commonly taught languages targeting
> > 400 students and 400 teachers in 5 states in 2007 and up to 3,000 students
> > and 3,000 teachers by 2011 in additional states.
> >
> > Increase the number of advanced-level speakers of foreign languages, with
> > an emphasis on critical needs languages by:
> >
> > Expanding the National Flagship Language Initiative to a $13.2 million
> > program aiming to produce 2,000 advanced speakers of Arabic, Chinese,
> > Russian, Persian, Hindi, and Central Asian languages by 2009.  Increasing
> > to up to 200 by 2008 the annual Gilman scholarships for financially-needy
> > undergraduates to study critical need languages abroad.  Creating new
> > State Department summer immersion study programs for up to 275 university
> > level students per year in critical need languages.  Adding overseas
> > language study to 150 U.S. Fulbright student scholarships annually.
> > Increasing support for immersion language study centers abroad.
> >
> > Increase the number of foreign language teachers and the resources for
> > them by:
> >
> >
> > Establishing a National Language Service Corps for Americans with
> > proficiencies in critical languages to serve the nation by:
> >
> > 1. Working for the federal government; and/or
> >
> > 2. Serving in a Civilian Linguist Reserve Corps (CLRC); and/or
> >
> > 3. Joining a newly created Language Teacher Corps to teach languages in
> > our nations elementary, middle, and high schools.
> >
> > This program will direct $14 million in FY07 with the goal of having 1,000
> > volunteers in the CLRC and 1,000 teachers in our schools before the end of
> > the decade.
> >
> > Establishing a new $1 million nation-wide distance-education E-Learning
> > Clearinghouse through the Department of Education to deliver foreign
> > language education resources to teachers and students across the country.
> > Expand teacher-to-teacher seminars and training through a $3 million
> > Department of Education effort to reach thousands of foreign language
> > teachers in 2007.
> >
> > 2006/12
> >
> >
> > Released on January 5, 2006
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > --
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> 06/01/2006
> >
> >
>
>