Each morning the Norwegian flag is raised signifying the start of a new day.
Norwegian “Roads Scholar” participants will experience two new interesting program elements at their program between September 26 – October 2, 2010. Participants will read Ibsen’s “The Wild Duck” and discuss yet another controversial play of the great Norwegian playwright. “The Wild Duck” is a story about the consequences and cost of searching for the truth and never fails to stimulate engaging discussion.
Also new this fall, an anthropology student will be on hand to record participants’ reflections on the meaning of Skogfjorden and Norwegian in their lives. The theme of the program this year: Sharing the meaning of Skogfjorden and all-things-Norwegian in your life by telling your story. If you choose to participate in the anthropology project, you’ll leave after a week with a CD of your story that you can then share with family and friends.
More information available at http://ow.ly/2u2Sw
For the second summer in a row, deans and program staff will be blogging about their programs so parents and friends can get a feel for the summer programs and see for themselves what kinds of activities the staff have planned for the villagers. Each site has a blog that contains useful information about the program, an introductory letter from the dean, and highlights of the session to share with family and friends. “The blogs, or Villagepages as we call them, are a great window into the program,” according to Vanessa Hughes, assistant director for marketing. “They are also an interesting way to help others hear about us and explain what we do at the Villages. When I’m describing Lac du Bois to someone, for example, and they get a little confused, I sometimes just send them to the blog.” Check out this summer’s blogs at 
Concordia Language Villages, the Finlandia Foundation, and a number of US-based music instructors have launched a very exciting music program which is growing steadily and developing a strong following. Soiva, is a music camp that takes place at Salolampi in the summer and features the study of piano, violin, flute, and clarinet. There are 31 villagers enrolled in the program this summer – an increase of five villagers over last year’s total. The program builds on the strength of the Finnish music education tradition and takes advantage of the depth of local and international music educators. Of the eight music instructors, five are coming from Finland specifically for this program and will provide opportunities for the villagers and staff of Salolampi to learn more about music and music instruction in Finland. The Soiva villagers performed a free concert at the courthouse in Bemidji on Thursday, June 17th at 5:00 PM.
Waldsee, the German Language Village, and Concordia Language Villages will host a conference examining the future of German in America that will be attended by Klaus Scharioth, German Ambassador to the U.S., along with innovative educators, business executives and foundation heads. Waldsee dean Dan “Karl” Hamilton sees the conference as an event to build on the past while looking to the future. “As part of Waldsee’s 50th summer we are keen to look to the next 50 years, and so have joined forces with other leading German language organizations to consider ways to work more effectively together to promote German language education in the United States.” Key partners for the conference are the Goethe Institut, the American Association of Teachers of German, and the German Embassy.
Concordia Language Villages is pleased to announce that Shaaban M. Shaaban, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for General Assembly and Conference Management, will speak at International Day on August 13 and will moderate the Global Summit. Each International Day, many villagers participate in a simulated summit that addresses issues of sustainability, history, or current politics. Under-Secretary-General Shaaban’s expertise and background will add significantly to the experience for our villagers this summer.
