UH Manoa Faculty Members Hold Leadership Positions in the American Association for Applied Linguistics

University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
Contact:
Robert Gibson, (808) 956-2800
Second Language Studies
Arlene Abiang, (808) 956-5637
External Affairs & University Relations
Posted: Sep 13, 2004

HONOLULU — UH Mānoa faculty members Craig Chaudron, Gabriele Kasper, Lourdes Ortega and Richard Schmidt from the Department of Second Language Studies in the College of Languages, Linguistics and Literature, currently hold leadership positions in the American Association for Applied Linguistics (AAAL), the primary organization for applied linguistics in the world.

Craig Chaundron, professor and graduate chair, has been elected as the incoming Secretary-Treasurer of AAAL for 2004-2009. The position serves as the primary chief operating officer, providing continuity for the organization.

Gabriele Kasper, professor, is the North American co-editor for Applied Linguistics, one of AAAL‘s four major research journals. Kasper serves as co-editor through 2008, and is responsible for gathering empirical studies and theoretical papers on language and language- related problems such as first and second language learning and teaching, critical linguistics, language in education, stylistics and rhetoric, translation, among others.

Lourdes Ortega, newly appointed assistant professor, has been elected to a three-year term as Member-At-Large on the AAAL Executive Committee for 2004-2007. She will assist the committee in carrying out rules and policies to govern the organization.

Richard Schmidt, professor, is the current Past President of AAAL, completing three years of service on the Executive Committee by the end of this year. During his time with AAAL, Schmidt served as Vice President, President, and Past President. His responsibilities included organizing the 2002 AAAL conference, providing direction for the AAAL, and now serving as advisor to the new president and the executive board.

The Department of Second Language Studies at UH Mānoa is probably the oldest and largest independent department in its field in the world. Originally called the Department of ESL, it was renamed in 2000 to reflect its broader focus. Its faculty and programs are held to be internationally outstanding. The interests of the students in the Department are not limited to the teaching of English. Many are researchers in second/foreign language acquisition generally; many have specialities in languages other than English.

Founded in 1977, the American Association for Applied Linguistics (AAAL) is a professional organization of scholars who are interested in and actively contribute to the multi-disciplinary field of applied linguistics. It‘s 1,400 members throughout North America and elsewhere promote principled approaches to language-related concerns, including language education, acquisition and loss, bilingualism, discourse analysis, literacy, rhetoric and stylistics, language for special purposes, psycholinguistics, second and foreign language pedagogy, language assessment, and language policy and planning.