Frequently Asked Questions about the Council

What is the Council?

The Council is the National Council of Less Commonly Taught Languages. It is an umbrella organization for national associations and induviduals interested in less commonly taught languages.



What is a Less Commonly Taught Language or LCTL?

The less commonly taught languages includes all languages other than English and the commonly taught European languages of German, French and Spanish.



What does the Council do?

The premise behind the development of the Council was to develop a means by which "collective solutions to common problems" could be developed and to provide a voice for organizations and induviduals in the field of less commonly taught languages. Toward this goal, the Council coordinates and conducts numerous projects. The Council provided funding to develop twenty-one language learning frameworks, a databases LCTL information and conducted research into the conditions and needs of the LCTLs. The Council was also instrumental in the creation of four national teachers organizations, and sponsors an annual conference on the less commonly taught languages.




Who belongs to the Council?

Currently the Council is comprised of eighteen language teacher associations and different induviduals in the United States and other parts of the world. These associations are national membership organizations, which represent either one language or a geographic language group. Each organization is represented in the Council through an Official Representative, who serves as the intermediary between the Associations and the Council. The officers of the Council are elected from and by the member organizations. For a complete list of the current organizational memberships, please visit the members page.



Where is the Council located?

The Council is headquartered at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. It shares a location with the National African Language Resource Center at 4231 Humanities Building, 455 North Park Street, Madison, WI 53706. The Officers, Official Representatives and Associations are distributed among universities and schools throughout the United States.



When was the Council founded?

The Council was inaugurated in 1990 following a series of meetings organized by the NFLC, supported by grants from the Ford Foundation. Currently, the Council is supported by the office of Dean of International Studies and Programs at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

What are the future plans for the Council?

The Council plans to continue its work in focusing attention on shared solutions to common problems in the LCTLs. It will devote its efforts to strengthening individual LCTL language fields, as well as expanding the number and scope of language areas within its mandate. The Council will work to secure a place for the LCTL agenda in a comprehensive national language policy -- a policy which treats all American language needs as interrelated and vital to our future prosperity. Finally, the Council is working to become self-supporting through the marketing of language services and products.



How can I get in contact with the Council?

If you would like additional information or have a question about Council activities, you can send e-mail to Antonia Schleicher , the Executive Director. You can also contact the Council by writing to the following address:

NCOLCTL
c/o University of Wisconsin-Madison,
4231 Humanities Building,
455 North Park Street,
Madison, WI 53706
.



Who can join the Council?

Presently, both American teacher associations representing a less commonly taught language, and individual LCTL instructors can become full members of the Council. The easiest way to join the Council is to visit the "Becoming a Member" page of this website and complete the appropriate application form. The Council secretariat will review the application and contact you regarding your submission.