Who Are We?

     Founded in 1964, the Washington Association for Language Teaching (WAFLT) serves a membership of 400 to 600 elementary through university level language teachers. WAFLT seeks to meet the needs of a profession dedicated to the teaching of world language skills and cultural awareness by providing information and sensitive global perspectives in an era of ever-increasing internationalization.

     We are associated with the Pacific Northwest Council for Languages (PNCFL), the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) and the Joint National Council on Language/National Council for Languages (JNCL/NCLIS). These links with regional and national associations help keep our membership current with national standards.

For the first time in a few years, WAFLT is proud to host TWO spring regional conferences! Our spring regional conferences are excellent professional development opportunities for all world language teachers around the state, in a smaller setting than our main fall conference. WAFLT members get a discount on registration, and all registered participants can earn FREE clock hours. In addition, there will be a $10 discount for those attending both conferences!

On March 20th, with our hosts at CWU, we will hold our conference in Ellensburg. The theme is Engage the World, and our keynote speaker will be Dr. Ralf Greenwald, assistant professor in CWU's Psychology department. The call for proposals for the March 20th Spring Regional in Ellensburg is now open. Please click here to submit a proposal. Proposals are due March 1 but we encourage you to get them in early to assist in our conference planning. If you have any questions about the CWU conference, please contact Bridget Yaden at byaden@plu.edu.

On April 10th, we will hold our conference at the University of Washington, co-sponsored by Canadian Studies. The call for proposals is now ready. Click here to submit your proposal online. If you have questions regarding the UW conference, please contact Misa Bourdoiseau at mizab@hotmail.com.

Please consider attending and presenting at BOTH conferences!

Congratulations to the 2009 WAFLT Award Recipients: Public Awareness--Maria Gillman, Creative Innovation--Catherine Meissner, Continued Distinguished Service--Rachel Halverson, Inspirational Leadership--Barbara Rupert, WAFLT Teacher of the Year--Susanne Kanning, Pro Lingua--Puesta del Sol Elementary, ISE Language Matters--Anita Emery. They were honored at the Friday Awards Luncheon at the fall conference in Spokane. Nominations are open for the 2010 Awards. Please consider honoring a deserving colleague by nominating her/him for one of WAFLT's awards. Details are in the Grants/Awards section of this website.

Congratulations also to our own Barbara Rupert! It was announced at the ACTFL Convention in San Diego that she is the newly elected President Elect of ACTFL! WAFLT is indeed fortunate to count her among its leaders and members!

WAFLT Office: (360) 709-0202 (voice and FAX)

Last updated: February 6, 2010