Campus Connection

UWL faculty member returns to Indonesia in celebration of the 50th anniversary of U.S. Department of State program

As universities around the world look to grow international student enrollment, UWL faculty member Heather Linville is helping them effectively teach classrooms full of international students.   

Linville, UWL associate professor of Educational Studies, received a U.S. Department of State award that will allow her to train faculty at two universities in Indonesia on how to better deliver content to their classes in English, July 5-21.  

“These are faculty who speak English, but they might not have thought through teaching in another language to people who are speaking English as a second or possibly third language,” she explains. 

Linville, an alumna of the U.S. Department of State English Language Fellow Program, was one of 13 alumni fellows across the U.S. selected to return to their countries-of-assignment as part of the Fellows@50 Encore: Go Back, Give Back contest. The contest commemorates the 50th Anniversary of the English Language Fellow Program, a program of the U.S. Department of State with funding provided by the U.S. Government, administered by Georgetown University.  

For 50 years, the Fellow Program has promoted mutual understanding between the U.S. and other countries through English language programming and cultural exchange. To celebrate this milestone, the program held a contest to send fellow alumni back to their countries-of-assignment to go back and give back through two-week projects. Proposal selection was highly competitive with only 10% of submitted projects accepted for funding. 

Linville was an English language fellow between 2003-2006, serving two years in Panama and one year in Indonesia. She shared her expertise on teaching English to others.  Linville will be sharing experiences returning to Indonesia on YouTube. Linville’s first video is up.

Linville will be uploading more videos as her journey continues under her name, Heather A. Linville.

During her stay in Indonesia, Linville will also give a keynote presentation on English as a medium of instruction and how it relates to internationalization at the Second International Association of Southeast Asian Nations English Language Teaching Conference.  

Linville teaches  UWL courses on teaching English as a second or foreign language and on Education in a Global Society. She says the trip will also benefit her UWL courses. 

"I’ll be able to bring students more ideas and insight about education in other places in the world,” she explains. 

About the English Language Fellow Program 

The English Language Fellow Program is the premier international exchange program that allows experienced American English teachers to enact meaningful and sustainable changes in the way that English is taught abroad. Through projects developed by U.S. Embassies in more than 80 countries, Fellows work directly with local teachers, students and educational professionals to improve the quality of English language instruction offered at prestigious universities and other academic institutions. English Language Fellows are counted among the more than 50,000 individuals participating in U.S. Department of State exchange programs each year.  

Since1969, the English Language Fellow Program has sent thousands of TESOL scholars and educators abroad to promote English language learning, enhance English teaching capacity, and build relations between the U.S. and other countries. On assignment, fellows conduct teacher training, teach English, develop resources, and organize events and conferences. These projects are challenging and the teachers selected represent the best of the U.S. TESOL community. In return, the program provides professional development opportunities to help participants experience different cultures and build skills that can greatly enhance their TESOL careers back home.