Conference welcomes second language educators to Cortland

09/15/2026

For a 34th year, educators from around New York state will come to Cortland for the Virginia Levine Second Language Educators' Conference: A Conference for Teachers and Teachers in Training.

The free event hosted by the Modern Languages Department takes place Saturday, Sept. 19, in Sperry Center, welcoming high school teachers and students along with other representatives from other colleges. Alumni also return to campus as participants and presenters. Sponsors include the Modern Languages Department, Cortland Auxiliary Services, the Clark Center for Global Engagement and the International Programs Office.

Registration online is required.

The conference is named in honor of Virginia "Ginny" Levine, a longtime faculty member and campus leader who passed away in 2020. Levine taught in the university's Modern Languages Department, served as the university's chief of staff and vice president for policy and accreditation and contributed to the New York State Association of Foreign Language Teachers.

The conference's theme this year is "The Butterfly Effect: Creating a Lasting Impact."

"This conference will provide an opportunity for students, cooperating teachers, college professors and college supervisors to meet and exchange ideas," said Patricia Martinez de la Vega Mansilla, conference coordinator and lecturer of Spanish. "Our keynote speaker will be Linda Slade, Spanish teacher at Jamesville-Dewitt High School with almost 20 years' experience in the profession."

The schedule runs from 8:15 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. and will keep participants busy with a half-day of workshops conducted by area middle school, junior high and high school teachers, and college professors of world languages.

In addition, there will be several presentations about best practices, the use of AI, proficiency in languages and the teaching of languages in general, along with sessions in French, Spanish and English for English language learners.

Workshop topics include:

• "Small Moments. Big Impact: Exploring the Butterfly Effect of World Language Instruction"

• "But What About DEI? How Does AI Impact the Representation of Cultures in the WL Classroom"

• "Creating Lists of Frequent Words Using the Vocabulary List Generator"

• "Dynamic Assessment Meets AI: Training ChatGPT to Support Interactive Language Learning"

• "The Case of the Missing Language Function"

• "Bringing Old School Engagement to New World Tools"

• "Integrating Quebec Culture in French Classes"

• "Building Confidence and Vocabulary Retention: Engaging Games and Extending Language Practice with AI in the WL Classroom"

• "From Theory to Practice: Creating Engaging Classrooms"

• "Tried and True Activities to Promote Oral Proficiency."

Attendees may receive four hours of CTLE credit for professional development.