Your Support Champions Language Education
In a world more interconnected than ever before, Language Connects Foundation donors play a vital role in empowering language learners and educators by making accessible the resources they need to grow and thrive.
Your contributions of any size, both financial and in service, elevate the language education profession and promote the transformative power of language learning for all language learners—whether they are learning a new language, improving an additional language, or strengthening their native language.
LCF by the Numbers
We’re Investing in a Multilingual Future
in scholarships granted to future language educators since 2019.
potential students inspired by the 63 current Teacher Scholars and 21 program graduates across the course of their teaching career.
in classroom microgrants distributed to K-12 languages teachers from 2023-2025.
in Convention stipends supporting ongoing educator professional development in 2024-2025.
educator volunteers who helped recognize colleagues, programs, and future teachers by serving on selection committees in 2024-2025
languages that the Student Ambassadors from the U.S. and 13 additional countries speak or are learning.
Greater Support for Language Educators
The seventh cohort of Future Teacher Scholars entered the program in Fall 2025. These 20 members of the 2025 Cohort hail from 12 states and plan to teach 8 languages—including American Sign Language, English as a Second Language, French, German, Japanese, Korean, Latin, and Spanish.
In maintaining our promise to continue to seek ways to expand funding opportunities for future teachers across different pathways to the profession, students entering both two- and four-year postsecondary institutions are now eligible to apply.
ACTFL & LCF provide more than $50,000 annually so that even more educators—including those from underserved communities—could take advantage of ongoing professional development.
Our annual Professional Awards Program continues to grow and shine a spotlight on excellence across 12 categories, recognizing achievement from diversity, equity, and inclusion in the language classroom to research, integration of technology, leadership, sustainable development education, and beyond!
Broader Access to Language Learning
Introduced in 2023 to help meet the classroom needs of K-12 language educators, the LCF/Vista Classroom Microgrants initiative awarded $60,000 in funding during its first two years of operation—supporting the cultural projects of educators of 13 languages across 37 states. The program will provide grants to an additional 100 educators from August 2025 through May 2026.
As the charitable and public education arm of ACTFL, LCF works alongside teachers, community leaders, and colleagues from like-minded organizations to support language programs at the local, state, and national level. Our website features a growing hub of advocacy resources for those seeking to start a language program, expand an existing program, or save a program at-risk—including relevant data points and actionable steps.
To further motivate and engage our communities, the LCF Blog
regularly features the stories of multilingual professionals across sectors, educators, and students for whom language learning has made a significant impact. This year, profiles have explored the value of languages in localization, medicine, law enforcement, pharmaceuticals, education, sustainable tourism, and beyond.
Deeper Connections Across Communities and Cultures
LCF completed an external bias review of the National Language Teacher of the Year Program in 2024, building upon feedback from past selection committee members and finalists or recipients at all levels of the program, with a goal to increase program equity. The Best Practices Guide suggestions for State and Regional leaders, supporting communities throughout the country as they celebrate the outstanding language educators nurturing the next generation of global citizens.
Launched in 2023, the Student Ambassadors Program convenes a dynamic international network of multilingual student leaders at the postsecondary level who serve as trailblazers for language education by raising their voices on our digital platforms, sharing their experiences, and engaging their networks both on-campus and around the globe—representing 13 U.S. states and 13 countries beyond our borders. We host quarterly, interactive professional development panels to connect these youth language champions with multilingual experts who are employing their language skills across sectors.
We thank early sponsors of LCF programs, as well as our donors (including the LCF GEMs who Give Every Month) for their support of our shared vision. Without them, this work would not be possible.
We invite you to learn more about all the ways you can join us as an individual or organization.