Bridging America’s Language Gap: A Call to Action

Leaders in American business, government, and education support a national effort to strengthen language education so that individual Americans can more effectively participate in a global society, and the nation as a whole can prosper in a global economy. 

Why is language education critical to America?

Language is the key to cultural understanding. While proficiency in English is essential in many facets of life in the 21st century, at home and abroad, knowledge of English alone is insufficient to meet the nation’s needs in a global society—as noted in America’s Languages: Investing in Language Education for the 21st Century, a report of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. American industry participates in more foreign markets than ever before and the nation is engaged, diplomatically or militarily, in every corner of the globe. Challenges in scientific research and technological innovation all require greater international collaboration. And we have a social obligation, established in law, to offer critical social services in languages other than English.

As the Academy report states, “[B]y several measures, the United States has neglected languages in its educational curricula, its international strategies, and its domestic policies.” This oversight has had “adverse and often unforeseen consequences at home and abroad—in business and diplomacy, in civic life, and in the exchange of ideas.” A more forward-thinking strategy for meeting future needs would advance policies and investments that promote language education for all Americans.

We have a responsibility to ourselves and to future generations—as parents, educators, policy-makers, and leaders in business and government—to support language learning in the United States to achieve the following results:

• Provide Access to Languages for all Age Groups and every level of the education continuum, from early childhood through retirement;
• Prepare More Language Teachers, without whom we cannot advance language education;
• Promote Public-Private Partnerships in language education to amplify the work begun in our schools;
• Support Heritage and Indigenous Language communities in their traditions and birthrights, and as an important and distinctive national resource; and
• Encourage International Learning Experiences for students, teachers, and workers through educational and professional programs, as a critical aspect of advanced language learning.

We, the signatories, attest that the public and private sectors require greater capacity in languages in addition to English, and we urge greater support for languages in order to maintain and enhance American global leadership. We stand ready to do our part.

Academic Associations

Alliance for the Arts in Research Universities 
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
American Council of Learned Societies
American Council on Education
American Historical Association
Association of American Universities
Association of Public and Land-grant Universities
Association for Psychological Science
The College Board
Consortium of Social Science Associations
Council of Independent Colleges
Linguistics Society of America
Modern Language Association
National Communication Association
National Humanities Alliance
The Phi Beta Kappa Society

Businesses

Avant Assessment
Certified Languages International
Global Institute for Language and Literacy Development
LanguageLine Solutions
Language Magazine
Localization Institute
LocWorld
Medtronic
Multilingual
Participate
Rosetta Stone
Velázquez Press

Colleges and Universities

Agnes Scott College 
Bennington College 
Boston University
Bryn Mawr College
Caldwell University
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, University of Florida
Columbus State University, Columbus, GA, Department of Modern and Classical Languages
Dominican University (IL)
Indiana University
Kent State University Institute for Applied Linguistics
Middlebury College
Newbury College
North Carolina State University
Ohio Dominican University
Simpson College
Stillman College
St. Norbert College
St. Thomas University
Texas Lutheran University
University of Colorado Boulder
University of Florida
University of Kansas
University of Maryland, College Park
University of Oregon
Whittier College

Cultural Organizations

UnidosUS
League of Latin American Citizens Florida

International Organizations

Asia Society
Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training
Galapagos Conservancy
International Career Advancement Program Alumni Association
International Mission of Mercy USA
International Women’s Entrepreneurial Challenge
National Peace Corps Association
Qatar Foundation International (QFI)
Senior Seminar Alumni Association

Language Education Associations

7000 Languages 
African Language Teachers Association
Alabama World Language Association
Alliance for International Exchange
American Association of Teachers of French
American Association of Teachers of German
American Association of Teachers of Japanese
American Association of Teachers of Korean
American Association of Teachers of Italian
American Association of Teachers of Slavic and East European Languages 
American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese
American Classical League
American Council of Teachers of Russian 
American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages
American Councils for International Education 
Arabic Honor Society
Arizona Language Association
Association of Latino Administrators and Superintendents
California Association for Bilingual Education
California Language Teachers Association
Californians Together
Campagna Center
Chinese Language Association of Secondary-Elementary Schools
Coalition for International Educational Exchange
Colorado Congress of Foreign Language Teachers
Concordia Language Villages
Connecticut Council of Language Teachers
The Council of Teachers of Southeast Asian Languages
DC Immersion
DUALLANGUAGESCHOOLS.ORG
Dual Language Education of New Mexico
Florida Foreign Language Association
Florida Foreign Language Managers of Education 
Foreign Language Association of Georgia
Foreign Language Association of Maine
Foreign Language Association of Missouri
Foreign Language Association of North Carolina
Foreign Language Educators of New Jersey
Foreign Language Association of Virginia
Hawaii Association of Language Teachers
IES Abroad
Illinois Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages
Indiana Foreign Language Teachers Association
Institute of International Education
International Association of Teachers of Czech 
Iowa World Language Association
Joint National Committee for Languages
Kentucky World Language Association
Massachusetts Association for Bilingual Education
Massachusetts Foreign Language Association
Michigan World Language Association
Minnesota Council on the Teaching of Languages and Cultures
Mississippi Foreign Language Association
Montana Association of Language Teachers
National Association of Bilingual Educators
National Association of District Supervisors of Foreign Languages
National Committee for Latin and Greek
National Council for Languages and International Studies
National Council of Less-Commonly Taught Languages
National Council of State Supervisors for Languages
National Federation of Modern Language Teachers Associations
National Foreign Language Center
National Heritage Language Resource Center
New York State Association of Foreign Language Teachers
North American Association of Teachers of Polish
Ohio Foreign Language Association
Oklahoma Foreign Language Teachers Association
Pacific Northwest Council on Foreign Languages
Pennsylvania State Modern Language Association
Professional Language Association Nevada
Rhode Island Foreign Language Association
SEALOFBILITERACY.ORG
Servicio Internacional de Evaluación de la Lengua Española 
South Dakota World Language Association 
Southern Conference of Foreign Language Teachers Association
Southern Conference on Language Teaching
Southwest Conference on Language Teaching
TESOL International Association
Texas Foreign Language Association
Wisconsin Association for Language Teachers
Wyoming Foreign Language Teachers Association

Professional Associations

American Academy of Diplomacy
Association of Black American Ambassadors 
Association of Language Companies
American Translators Association
Certification Commission for Healthcare Interpreters
Globalization and Localization Association
Network of Business Language Educators (NOBLE)

School Systems

Denver Public Schools
District of Columbia Public Schools
Thompson School District, Loveland, Colorado

State Humanities Councils

Federation of State Humanities Councils
California Humanities
Humanities North Dakota
Illinois Humanities
Missouri Humanities Council
New Jersey Council for the Humanities
Vermont Humanities Council

To learn more about this project, visit www.amacad.org/language.