Department Archives: Modern Languages and Literatures

Alla Kourova has been awarded a STARTALK grant for the third year in a row. Kourova’s proposal, “Preparation of a Business Trip to Russia,” has been selected for funding as part of the STARTALK 2017 program. Kourova is an assistant professor of Russian. STARTALK offers students (K–16) and teachers of these languages creative and engaging […]

The UCF-Hillcrest Modern Language Club, established in spring 2015, provides UCF and Hillcrest Elementary School students the opportunity to use their Spanish and French skills in a collaborative environment. This partnership connects UCF students with the greater Orlando community. Hillcrest Elementary School, which is part of the Orange County Public School System, serves a diverse […]

Dr. Florin Mihai and Dr. Kerry Purmensky of the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures have just received a 5-year, 2.4 million dollar research grant from the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of English Language Acquisition (OELA). Both are Co-Principal Investigators with Principal Investigator Dr. Joyce Nutta of the College of Education and Human Performance. […]

Dr. Keith Folse (Professor of TESOL) was invited to deliver the opening plenary address to the 30th Annual Congress 2016 at the Universidad Interamericanama de Panama in Panama City on September 16, 2016. His talk compared teachers’ vs. learners’ perceptions of the most challenging aspects of learning English as a foreign language, particularly grammar. Citing […]

On September 22, 2016, Dr. Kourova presented her book, Picturing Russia: Research Guide to Russian Culture, in Washington, D.C. at the Embassy of the Russian Federation to the USA. She met with the head of the Russian Cultural Center and the first secretary of the Embassy of the Russian Federation to the USA, Oleg Zhiganov. […]

Every day for an entire semester, Alex A. Alvarado would wake up, walk to Capitol Hill, and say to himself: “Man, how did I get here?” Both resourceful and ambitious, this legal studies major grabbed at a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for a behind-the-scenes look of government during one of the nation’s most colorful election periods. Alvarado […]

July 2016 marked the second year in a row of an intensive Russian language program at UCF. (Program director Alla Kourova). The program, STARTALK, meaning “Start Talking” lasted for 3 weeks, starting Monday, July 11th. It consisted of 60 students, both beginner and advanced, who had the opportunity to participate in this program for free. […]

The International TESOL Association has recognized UCF’s Dr. Keith Folse as one of a special group of “50 at 50” leaders who have made a significant contribution to the TESOL profession within the past fifty years. According to the International TESOL Association, “Their leadership has helped build the association and develop English language teaching and […]

In June of 2016, 18 UCF students traveled to Russia to study abroad at Moscow State University. Dr. Kourova is the program director. There they had the opportunity to study the Russian language, explore Moscow and St. Petersburg, and experience all the Russian culture had to offer. After their classes at the Institute of Russian […]

A free immersive program at UCF this summer to teach Russian speech and culture is part of a U.S. program designed to prepare students to be proficient in a “critical need” language. UCF’s STARTALK program, under the direction of Alla Kourova, an assistant professor of Russian, will be offered weekdays July 11-29 for 60 people […]