Faculty and Staff

T here are over 1,100 civilian teachers employed at the DLIFLC, most of whom are native speakers of the language they teach. Over 95 % of the faculty have at least a Bachelor degree with 15% holding PhDs and 40% holding Master degrees. Over 55% of the degrees held by the faculty are in Foreign Language Education or related fields. Represented disciplines include Foreign Language, Second Language Acquisition, Education, Area Studies, and English.

In addition to the civilian teachers, there are nearly 350 military personnel who participate in or provide support for the DLIFLC’s academic activities, while some some 400 civilian personnel work in base operations. The military permanent party personnel assigned to the DLIFLC represent the four branches of the U.S. Armed Services.

Because of DLIFLC’s unique environment, the Institute provides in-house workshops and teacher certification courses which allow instructors to improve and build upon their teaching skills. DLIFLC encourages and supports instructors in their efforts to obtain higher education degrees from local universities which have partnered with the Institute.

Supplementing the civilian instructors are almost 100 Military Language Instructors (MLIs), who are noncommissioned/petty officers of the four branches of the U.S. Armed Forces. MLIs augment the civilian teaching faculty and provide a military presence in the schoolhouse, while serving as mentors and teachers. They play a significant role in transitioning DLIFLC students from young new recruits to confident military linguists.

The skills and expertise of the faculty and staff are accessible beyond the confines of the DLIFLC’s academic programs. Limited translation and interpretation support is provided to affiliates of the Department of Defense (DoD) and national-level agencies on a space-available basis. Requests are prioritized on a case-by-case basis according to urgency of need and the DLIFLC’s ability to honor the request. The DLIFLC’s Public Affairs Office also maintains a speaker’s bureau as a function of its community relations program. This service assists local organizations in drawing on the wealth of specialized experience that exists in the DLIFLC community.