Saturday, February 25, 2012

Meet the Instructors!

Today's post is all about the IUHPFL Brest 2012 instructors.  We recently went bowling as a team-building exercise, hence our matching photos!


Rodica Frimu
I am Rodica Frimu and I am a PhD student in French Linguistics at IU. I come from Moldova, but I lived and studied for three years in the South of France before coming to the US. It is going to be my second year in Brest as an instructor for the IU Honors Program. Last year, I taught culture and I was the logistics coordinator. I will do the same this year. I can't wait to meet all the students. I'm sure it is going to be a great summer! À bientôt!


Michael Dow
Hi all! My name is Michael Dow, and this is my third year with the program (third in Brest, as well). I'll be acting as Student Coordinator teaching Communications. I'm a third year joint PhD student in French Linguistics and General Linguistics with an interest in phonology, creole languages, and Northern French dialects and regional languages. In my spare time (hah!), I enjoy running and making a mess of the kitchen cookingI can't wait to come back to Brest, my home away from home, and meet our wonderful, talented, ambitious stagiaires!




Amy Conrad
My name is Amy Conrad and I am looking forward to teaching literature this summer. I am also the Public Relations Coordinator, so I'm generally the one updating the blog and managing social networking. I'm a Hoosier native and a licensed teacher, though this is my first year working for IUHPFL. I'm a masters student here at IU studying French literature. I have studied abroad in Rennes, France, and also spent a year teaching elementary English in Vernon, France, just outside of Paris and in walking distance of Giverny and Monet's gardens. In my spare time I love reading, running, and backpacking - I'm hoping to explore some of Brest's hiking trails!






Mark Black

I hail from eastern Wyoming at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. I have a B.A. and M.A. in French from the University of Wyoming, a licence degree from the Université de Rouen, and I am currently a master's student in French Linguistics at Indiana University. I have taught English in France and French in the U.S., at both the high school and university level. I enjoy French cinema and I have also at various times taken an interest in French music, which even resulted in me appearing on French TV on one occasion. I'm a lifelong baseball fan, and I'm more than halfway to my goal of attending a ballgame in every Major League city.






Friday, February 24, 2012

Congratulations and welcome!



Welcome to the official blog for the IU Honors Program in Foreign Languages for Brest, 2012! This blog will be used to provide occasional updates prior to departure, and then weekly updates once we all arrive in France. We are looking forward to meeting our future stagiaires and parents. Coming up soon - some more pictures from our team-building and planning session with some brief biographies!