Program Director: Mary Thrond
All inquiries can be directed to the following address: [email protected].
All inquiries can be directed to the following address: [email protected].
Here is some information about your team of instructors for the 2017 FARGO STARTALK program:
MEET YOUR TEAM Mary Thrond, Program Director, was the program director for ND's first STARTALK program for 47 students of Chinese in 2013. She has had a 40+ year career in international education at home and abroad. She holds a Master's of Education from NDSU and a Master's in Spanish Language and Culture from the University of Salamanca in Spain. Her B.A. is from the UW Madison in Anthropology /Linguistics. She directed a student educational exchange program with England, France, Spain and the United States in Madrid from 1981-1985. She has consulted on language education in Argentina, Brazil, and China. She served as the program administrator of Concordia Language Villages in Minnesota, responsible for curriculum and staff development in ten languages from 1993-1998. She has directed after-school language programming in Fargo Moorhead, introducing Arabic and Chinese classes for the first time in the area. She led a World Languages Task Force for Moorhead Public Schools which resulted in the establishment of a high school Chinese program. She held a summer ESL program for high school students from Europe and Asia. She teaches Spanish at the collegiate level and supervises high school teachers offering college credit. She is a regular presenter at local, regional and national conferences. Daisy Laone, Instructional Lead for the teacher program: Born and raised in Taiwan where Mandarin Chinese is the official language, Mrs. Laone came to the United States in 2004. After teaching English as a Second Language in Taiwan for eight years, she began teaching Mandarin. In 2009, she was certified as an OPI (Oral Proficiency Interview) rater of Mandarin Chinese from ACTFL. In the summer of 2011, she received the Connecticut teaching certification for teaching Mandarin Chinese for K-12 and taught Mandarin in both public and private school systems since 2011. Her experience of learning and teaching languages gives her a unique perspective on the entire process of learning a second language. Her teaching philosophy is to inspire students to learn in their own personal ways and to have fun doing it. She loves any opportunity to share her own experience with other teachers and to learn from others. Dr. Theresa Jen, MOPI trainer: Dr. Theresa Jen 任長慧 is an internationally recognized educator. She is a Fulbright Scholar and recipient of the National Endowment of the Humanities award. Her early research in international studies and sociolinguistics spawned her instinct to teach. She began at Princeton University and then Bryn Mawr College, both institutions at which she received the high honor of the Distinguished Teaching Award. Dr. Jen has been with University of Pennsylvania since 2000, served as Wharton School GIP (Global Immersion Program) Professor and Director of Chinese Program, Lauder Institute of Management and International Studies. In addition to the teaching, Dr. Jen has served as consultant to the American Council for the Teaching Foreign Languages (ACTFL), the Educational Testing Services (ETS), and The College Board. She initiated an effort with each of these organizations to review college language programs and national examinations, among various international education projects. She was appointed US Board of Examiner to the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education. As Chair of ACTFL Proficiency Committee in China, she has been invited to conduct numerous professional development workshops in pedagogy and assessments for K-12 programs in the States and overseas. Her work has rewarded with the European Council of International Schools Excellence in Teaching and Achievement award. In 2008, Dr. Jen’s third textbook, Shuohua Deti, was published and was recognized by the Chinese Ministry of Education, as one of the twenty “Textbooks of the Year.” Dr. Jen has also been an invited speaker internationally including Shanghai Jiaotung University, Fudan University, Beijing Foreign Studies University, Tsinghua University in China, National Chengchi University in Taiwan, and Samsung Corporation, Seoul, Korea. She also served as keynote speaker at the 2012 International Conference on Business Chinese Teaching in Copenhagen, Demark. Reed Riggs, Instructional Lead of the student program: Born and raised in Tarzana, California, Mr. Riggs started learning Mandarin in 2001 at the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington, with a BA in "Chinese Language and International Affairs" and a minor in Economics. Mr. Riggs completed his MA at Sichuan University in "Teaching Chinese as an International Language", after living and working in China for seven years. Mr. Riggs is currently studying toward a PhD at the University of Hawai'i, while also teaching at Punahou School's 2nd-3rd grade after school Mandarin Immersion program. Mr. Riggs currently teaches Mandarin to undergraduate students at the University of Hawai'i, as part of a Graduate Assistantship. Mr. Riggs has worked the University of Hawai'i's Startalk summer teacher-training institute and student summer camp, each summer since 2012. Dr. Gay Rawson, Instructor and Technology Expert, is a Professor of World Languages and Cultures at Concordia College. Once a web designer / technology consultant, she has become a recognized expert on technology and its implementation in world language classrooms and shares this knowledge through workshops, presentations, and in the Master of Education in World Language Instruction program at Concordia College. She is also involved in the First-Year Experience, Global Studies, Women’s Studies Programs, and directs the International Business program in France. She has led numerous study abroad programs in Cameroon, France, Germany, Guadeloupe, Switzerland, and Vietnam. She is a certified expert in translation and interpretation and was a certified ACTFL OPI tester. She has presented internationally on technology, foreign language pedagogy, study abroad programs, business languages, and relationships between literature / medicine. |