June Phillips

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MONMOUTH, Ill. — Monmouth College will host a “Year of Languages” lecture on Oct. 26 at 4 p.m. in the Kasch Performance Hall of the Dahl Chapel and Auditorium.

Entitled “Learning World Languages: A Reality or a Fantasy Show,” the talk will be given by June Phillips, dean of the College of Arts and Humanities at Weber State University in Ogden, Utah.

Phillips will answer the questions, “What is it really like to learn another language, and what are the rules of the game?”

“Myths abound about learning a language and culture and about using it for work or just plain living,” said Phillips. “I want to explore with the audience the truths and the possibilities that surround studying languages and abandoning monolingualism.”

Phillips, who is also a professor of French at Weber State, began teaching French in 1960 at a high school in Pennsylvania. Her experience includes 12 years at that level and 15 years at Indiana University of Pennsylvania in Indiana, Pa. She has been at Weber State since 1993.

Phillips was executive director of the Tennessee Foreign Language Institute from 1987-93, and she has also served as the president of the American Council of the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL).

Monmouth College was the first private college in the United States to proclaim 2005 as The Year of Languages. The college did so in response to an ACTFL initiative.

Monmouth recently completed a comprehensive review of its curriculum that led to a greater emphasis on language study, off-campus programs and exchange agreements with foreign universities.

“Governments and industry both have a pressing need for employees with a clear understanding of the cultures and languages of other countries,” said Rajkumar Ambrose, MC’s vice president for academic affairs, at the time of the proclamation.