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Normandale, a French Immersion School in Minnesota

I visited an impressive French immersion school in Minnesota: Normandale elementary school in Edina.

Normandale is a K–5 French immersion elementary school with more than 600 students. Normandale follows the same curriculum as that of the other elementary schools in Edina. However, all curricular content is in French and English. Finding my way around the school was easy as all signs were in French: in the classrooms, in the hallways, and even in the cafeteria!

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Unequal Partners book launch at Carnegie Corporation of New York

I launched my new book Unequal Partners: American Foundations and Higher Education Development in Africa (Palgrave Macmillan., 170 pp., ISBN 978–1–137–59347–4) at Carnegie Corporation of New York. President Vartan Gregorian, who also wrote the preface, introduced the book and myself during a beautiful reception.

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French Government Awards M.S. 256 in New York with Label “FrancEducation”

Middle School 256 in Manhattan (154 West 93rd Street, New York, NY) was awarded the Label FrancEducation by the French Government for its successful French dual language program.

The ceremony took place at M.S. 256 on September 22, 2016 in the presence of Brigitte Ayrault, wife of Foreign Affairs Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault, Bénédicte de Montlaur, Cultural Counselor of the French Embassy in the United States, and Kareen Rispal, Director of the Americas at French Ministry of Foreign Affairs who gave the award to Brian Zager, principal of the school.

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French Minister Vallini awards Label “FrancEducation” to P.S. 110 in Brooklyn

French Minister André Vallini awarded the Label FrancEducation to P.S. 110 The Monitor School in Greenpoint, Brooklyn and its principal, Anna Cano Amato.

Created in 2011, the label is given to schools that champion the French language and cultures of the French-speaking world by providing successful French Dual Language programs. Continue reading “French Minister Vallini awards Label “FrancEducation” to P.S. 110 in Brooklyn”

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Burlington, VT: A City’s Strategy to Develop Economically through Language Education

I was interviewed by Steve Norman for a Burlington cable TV channel. The City Council of Burlington, VT is promoting French friendliness towards its visitors, and a French dual language program is being considered for one of the local elementary schools. I spoke about my background in bilingual education, presented a few examples of dual language programs in Utah, Massachusetts, and New York, and talked about the Bilingual Revolution -both the movement and the book that I am currently writing. I also discussed various options to consider when implementing a French dual language program. Continue reading “Burlington, VT: A City’s Strategy to Develop Economically through Language Education”

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The Impact of Bilingualism on Aging: A Conversation with Ana Ines Ansaldo

A few days ago, I was very fortunate to spend time with Ana Ines Ansaldo, who kindly visited me in Willsboro, on beautiful Lake Champlain, where I am working on my book, The Bilingual Revolution.  Dr. Ansaldo is a professor at the School of Speech Therapy and Audiology at the University of Montreal where she heads the Language, Communication, and Aging Laboratory. She is also the Director of Teaching at the Geriatric Institute of Montreal. Her research focuses on the aging brain and language processing. She combines functional magnetic resonance imaging with tools from cognitive neuropsychology and communication sciences and disorders, so as to study neuroplasticity mechanisms supporting the recovery of language abilities, disrupted by stroke or dementia. Continue reading “The Impact of Bilingualism on Aging: A Conversation with Ana Ines Ansaldo”

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Marybeth Gasman, University of Pennsylvania, endorses Unequal Partners: American Foundations and Higher Education Development in Africa

Fabrice Jaumont has written a book that needed to be written decades ago. Unequal Partners: American Foundations and Higher Education Development in Africa tells the complicated story of how philanthropy has shaped higher education, in both positive and negative ways. Although the “great” philanthropists have been lauded in many books for decades, recent scholarship has challenged their benevolence and that of their foundations. Jaumont provides a fair portrayal of major foundation players in African higher education—those with a long track record and those that have just started to play a role. Rather than present these foundations as saviors that uplift higher education on the continent, Jaumont presents a nuanced view, detailing the profound impact as well as the “unequal” relationships that result when one of the partners has more resources and the other is in need of resources. Of note, the discussions and themes featured in the book are useful to those studying and working with foundations in the USA as well as in Africa. Interestingly, many of the interventions in Africa are similar to those in urban and minority communities in the USA. Overall, Unequal Partners is beautifully written, succinctly and effectively argued, and timely.

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