Government of Quebec honors Indiana University scholar of French language usage in North America

[Harold Schiffman]

Government of Quebec honors IU scholar of French language usage in North America
April 21, 2008

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Albert Valdman, Rudy Professor emeritus of
French, Italian and linguistics, has been honored by the government of
Quebec Province in Canada for his work to foster better understanding
of the use of the French language in North America. This honor was
bestowed by the Conseil supérieur de la langue française (High Council
of the French Language), the Quebec institution that oversees the
province's language policy. It recognized Valdman and the contribution
of IU's French Linguistics graduate program and the Creole Institute
in pioneering research on French in the Americas.

"Professor Albert Valdman has dedicated his exceptional career to the
French language in North America," said Conrad Ouellon, president of
the Conseil supérieur de la langue française. "Unwilling to accept
that the varieties of French spoken by millions of American
Francophones be considered inferior to other varieties of French in
the world, he has devoted his energy to the recognition of these
unique varieties of French as well as to the documentation of their
characteristics."

In response, Valdman said, "I am deeply honored by the recognition of
my contribution to the documentation of American varieties of French
and the teaching of French in our country. "I would be remiss,
however, if I did not share this honor with my colleagues in the
French linguistics program, particularly Julie Auger and Kevin Rottet,
who are ranking specialists in the description of French in North
American and the sociolinguistic theory and methodology on which that
work depends," he added. "Also, I would acknowledge a debt of
gratitude to my doctoral students who have extended -- and improved
upon -- my work on North American varieties of French and the pedagogy
of French as a foreign language."

The Creole Institute, which Valdman directs, has published a Haitian
Creole-English Bilingual Dictionary. Funded by a Title VI U.S. federal
grant, the dictionary is the most thorough and extensive dictionary
for the language. Last year, Valdman also received a prestigious
Andrew W. Mellon Emeritus Fellowship to support production of a
dictionary of Louisiana Regional French, which is in an advanced stage
of language loss. Valdman also received an award of $300,000 from the
National Science Foundation for sociolinguistic research on Haitian
Creole. The ceremony took place at the National Assembly of the
Province of Quebec on March 12. Among those present were Régis
Labeaume, the mayor of Quebec City, and two ministers of the
government of Quebec Province.

The Quebec Conseil also recognized Valdman's role in the teaching of
French in the United States. Teaching materials he has produced, some
in collaboration with graduates of the French Linguistic program, have
had a major impact at the high school and college levels. As director
of basic language instruction in French for many years, Valdman
instituted a teacher training program whose excellence is recognized
nationally. The journal he founded 30 years ago and still edits,
Studies in Second Language Acquisition, published by Cambridge
University Press, ranks as one of the leading publications in the
field. Valdman has served as vice president and president of the
American Association of Teachers of French.

http://newsinfo.iu.edu/news/page/normal/8037.html

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