News & Events - Department of Second Language Studies

Five SLS Professors among Top 2% of Scientists Worldwide

Five professors from the Department of Second Language Studies are among the top 2% of scientists in the world, according to Stanford University’s latest World’s Top 2% Scientists list, which identifies scholars who are top-cited in their respective fields. First…

Campus Huaka‘i co-founded by Dr. Christina Higgins featured in UH News

The Campus Huaka‘i, a campus tour focused on the Hawaiian history and ʻili ʻāina (land divisions), was featured in UH News in its May 6th issue. Along with some key areas of the campus, Dr. Christina Higgins, one of the…

Dr. Betsy Gilliland wins CALL Award for Excellence in Teaching

Dr. Betsy Gilliland has been awarded the CALL Award for Excellence in Teaching! She was recognized in the Spring 2025 issue of CALL Lately. Congratulations, Dr. Gilliland!

SLS Gets Students Ready for Faculty-Sponsored Study Tours

The SLS Summer Abroad Pre-Departure Meeting brought together students preparing to go abroad during the Summer of 2025. Participants connected with fellow travelers, heard valuable advice from past students who went to the Deep Dive Program through CCS-Peking University, and…

Sera Chun wins Professor Jack Bilmes Endowed Award

PhD Student Sera Chun has won the 2025 Professor Jack Bilmes Endowed Award for her work on her dissertation titled “Second language teachers’ cognition and practices for pronunciation-focused instruction.” The Professor Jack Bilmes Endowed Award provides support to dissertation-level doctoral…

Congratulations Asia Gillette, Faith C. Ai Scholarship Awardee

MA student Asia Gillette is one of the recipients of the 2025 Faith C. Ai Scholarship, a $5,000 award for students who intend to teach after graduation and are in or from the state of Hawai‘i. Congratulations, Asia!

Photo of Angel Sanchez (SLT Minor Student)

Angel Sanchez featured in the UH News for her UROP Study!

Congratulations to our SLS Teaching Minor student Angel Sanchez for her accomplishment of her Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) study in Venice, Italy in summer 2024 and being featured on UH News! Her project was about comparing European and international…

New Resource Website for Global Englishes-focused Teaching Materials

A new website for Global Englishes-focused teaching materials is now available! https://sites.google.com/hawaii.edu/ge-focused-teaching-materials/ This website was designed by Kenton “Kenny” Harsch, retired English Language Institute Director and Undergraduate Coordinator and Advisor, and Michelle Kunkel, PhD candidate. The website includes an explanation…

CASE teaches debate skills at Waipahu High School

On Friday, February 7th, the graduate assistants of the Center for Academic Spoken English (CASE) delivered a workshop on small group debate skills to Grade 10 and 11 English Language Learners at Waipahu High School. The workshop aimed to promote…

Jieun Kim wins Duolingo English Test Dissertation Award

Jieun Kim, PhD candidate, is one of eight recipients of the 2024 Duolingo English Test Doctoral Dissertation Award. Through our annual Doctoral Dissertation Awards, the Duolingo English Test (DET) proudly recognizes and celebrates outstanding doctoral research in the field of…