UF-Kyoto Program: Cross-Cultural Engineering & Design -Japanese Studies
The UF-Kyoto Program is a collaborative initiative between the Department of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures (Japanese Program) and the Department of Computer & Information Science & Engineering. In Fall 2025, Dr. Kensaku Ogata (LLC) and Dr. Jeremiah Blanchard (Engineering) are co-directing the program on site in Kyoto, Japan. This interdisciplinary program allows UF engineering students to take courses such as Al in Practice and 3D Engine, while engaging in Japanese language classes, tea ceremony experiences, and weekly cross-cultural exchanges with students from Kyoto University and other local institutions.
“I have had such a great time in this Study Abroad program! I was nervous at first when deciding if I should attend or not, but I am really happy I followed through with it. It is definitely one of my favorite college experiences! I have met many lifelong friends, and I was able to be exposed to a very interesting and new culture!”
“My experience in the program so far has been extremely positive, and this opportunity has been a major highlight of my time at UF. I love how the program allows us to become Kyoto University students so that we can experience everything the average university student in Japan would, as well as the Japanese language course giving us the foundation to make friendships with other students. I also really enjoy how much freedom is given to us, as I was able to go on a multi-day biking trip with other students one weekend, which has become a major highlight of the program for me. Because of this program, I am able to go deeper into Japanese culture and daily life more than I ever could if I were just a tourist here, which has given me a new perspective on the world as a whole.”
“The UF-Kyoto Program has directly impacted my worldview and direction in life moving forward. I will be graduating this upcoming December, and has truly opened my eyes up to the wonders of travelling abroad. It was completely spontaneous that I signed up for the trip, applying one day before the deadline. If you have the opportunity to study abroad or travel in general, take it. It will change your life as it has changed mine. ありがとうございます!”
African Flagship Languages Initiative (AFLI) Program Fall 2025 Report
The African Flagship Languages Initiative (AFLI) program sent 15 students to 2 countries on the continent of Africa Tanzania and Senegal – in Fall 2025 for the 15-week overseas full semester language immersion program from August 20-December 6, 2025. AFLI is a special initiative of the Boren Awards funded by the Defense Language and National Security Education Office (DLNSEO), administered through the Institute of International Education (IIE) in Washington DC. Boren Awards are scholarships and fellowships for U.S. undergraduate and graduate students committed to long-term overseas study and to public service. Awardees receive generous funding to study the languages most critical to the United States’ security in Africa, Asia, Central and Eastern Europe, Eurasia, Latin America, and Middle East. AFLI provides opportunity for intensive language study of 5 languages Akan/Twi, French, Swahili, Wolof, and Zulu, and cultural immersion by participating in domestic and overseas programs. Participants may start with no language proficiency through advanced proficiency in Akan/Twi, Swahili, Wolof, and Zulu. French is offered at the advanced level only.
The program is hosted at the University of Florida by the Department of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures (LLC) and the Center for African Studies (CAS), through an external grant provided by the United States Department of Defense and managed by the Institute of International Education (IIE) in Washington DC. Prior to the fall 2025 overseas program, AFLI students participated in an 8-week full-time domestic summer intensive program offered in-person on campus in Gainesville in June-July. Students then traveled abroad for a full-time overseas immersion fall semester of language and culture study. In addition to full-time language courses, students interacted with native speakers of their language of study, they participated in language conversation tables, they lived with local families, they also participated in out of classroom / experiential learning activities (such as cooking and cultural visits /excursions) to help ensure that language goals are met. For the Fall 2025 program, we admitted students from the following universities nationally: Baylor University, Bryn Mawr College, Columbia University in the City of New York, Clemson University, Georgetown University, Salisbury University, Rutgers University, The University of Texas at Austin, The University of Texas at San Antonio, University of Georgia at Athens, University of Maryland-College Park, University of South Florida, University of Denver, University of Notre Dame, and University of lowa.
Virtual Exchange and Program Growth in Italian Studies
Beginning Italian I students engaged in a vibrant linguistic and cultural exchange with native Italian “coaches” through the Lingua Meeting platform. Held virtually in small groups, these sessions explored themes such as university life (including differences between U.S. and Italian systems), leisure activities, favorite foods, and culinary traditions. In addition to these conversations, students joined a lively in-class Zoom session with members of an Italian family. Together, these experiences enriched vocabulary, sharpened listening skills, and fostered meaningful cultural connections. The Italian program held a career session on Monday November 17. ITAlenti in azione featured a discussion of MA programs in Italian, potential career paths outside academia, the English for Everybody language assistant in Italy program, and the virtual participation of Italian alumni currently engaged in a range of post-graduation activities and careers. The Italian program also recorded a student-centered video which will feature in future recruitment efforts. The video, created in collaboration with the Digital Worlds Institute studio, features student sharing their experience in the Italian program. It will be used in the spring when our upper-level students will visit our elementary language classes to recruit for the Italian major and minor.
Translation Studies Certificate Program
The Translation Studies Certificate is a recent undergraduate certificate capitalizing on the language proficiency of the students majoring in our Department and in the Classics and Spanish and Portuguese Departments, as well as on the expertise of several of our colleagues in the domain of translation. Students successfully test their linguistic skills and discover theories underpinning the techniques and art of translation. The number of interested students in this program is steadily growing, and students and professors alike value the exchanges among disciplines that the program makes possible.
SHINE Project
An advancement of the interdisciplinary project SHINE (Sciences Humanities Intelligence Nurturing Emotions), supported by a CLAS SPARK grant, integrating student ecopoetry, VR environments of Florida’s springs developed with the Digital Worlds Studio, Al-driven narration, and EEG measures of emotional engagement in collaboration with Eleonora Rossi’s BLAB (Linguistics). The project brings together colleagues across CLAS, the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences (Agricultural Education and Communication), and the UF Water Institute, and will receive its first public showcase at the Water Institute Symposium in Spring 2026, in the humanities-focused session “Waters & Words: Culture, History, and the Human Experience.”