University News

Come to Our Multilingual Community Potluck! Ready to chat in another language while eating some delicious food? We’re hosting our quarterly Multilingual Potluck on Thursday, July 30 from 5:30–7:30 PM and would love to have you join! Bring a dish to share that represents your country of interest and enjoy the culinary prowess of others in Bend. This community event is open to everyone so come on by, bring a friend, and meet fellow community members and travelers in Bend. We invite attendees to offer a small donation ($5-10) to support scholarships for low-income English and American Sign Language learners. Provided [...]

Join Us For A South African School Fundraiser Did you know that South Africa has 11 official languages, several ethnic groups with distinct cultural traditions, stunning national parks filled with wildlife, and some of the best wines in the world? On Monday, July 27, from 5:30–7:00 pm, we are hosting an interactive fundraiser with local nonprofit Bend Education Initiative. During this workshop, we'll explore some of the amazing cultural and linguistic features of South Africa, from Cape Town to Johannesburg, Kruger National Park to the Wild Coast. We'll share highlights of the country's rich history, along with personal experiences that showcase [...]

Bend Language Institute Named Platinum Winner in Community Votes Bend Thank you to everyone who supported Bend Language Institute this summer! We are proud to be named the Platinum Winner in the Language Classes category of Community Votes Bend. This recognition is truly meaningful to us. We are honored to serve our community and remain committed to fostering a welcoming, engaging, and positive language-learning experience for all. We look forward to seeing you in classes and at fun community events this summer!

Second Sunday in Sisters Success! Thank you all for joining us for our first Second Sunday in Sisters at Eurosports in June for some multilingual fun. This community event was a blast! We had about 20 people attend to practice Spanish, Portuguese, Italian and Spanish on that beautiful afternoon. People were so excited to meet new people and see old friends to speak a range of languages. The local Sisters newspaper, The Nugget, wrote a news article about our event and that helped bring a lot of people in. You can read the news article here. Our next Second Sunday in [...]

Good Morning Central Oregon, Spring has arrived and summer is coming up fast! We’re excited to announce that our summer courses are now open for registration, and we would love to have you join us for another season of language learning and community connection. Summer Classes French Introductory French I Elementary French Intermediate French Advanced Intermediate French French Conversation Practice Italian Italian Travel Essentials Intensive Beginner Italian Intensive Beginner Italian (Part 2) Beginner Italian Conversation Italian III Immersion Intermediate Italian Conversation Advanced Italian Italian Conversation Practice The Language of Italian Food Workshop English Everyday English for Beginners Spanish Spanish Travel Essentials Workshop Accelerated [...]

Multilingual Monday in Bend and Second Sunday in Sisters Summer is coming up quickly, and we have free community events where you can connect with others and practice a variety of languages! Multilingual Monday — June 1 at Midtown Yacht Club Join us for Multilingual Monday on June 1 from 5–7 pm at Midtown Yacht Club. We’ll be meeting at the outdoor tables during the warm summer months. Grab a beverage, find your language group, and enjoy lively conversation. Multilingual Monday is a free community event held on the first Monday of every month. People come together to practice Spanish, Japanese, [...]

Join Us For Spring Language Classes Spring is just around the corner and we would love to have you join us for more language learning fun! See our spring course offering below, as well as more information on private learning opportunities. English Everyday English for Beginners French Elementary French Intermediate French Advanced Intermediate French French Fluency through Stories German Introductory German I German II Italian Italian Travel Essentials Introductory Italian I Italian II Italian III Advanced Intermediate Italian Conversation Advanced Italian Japanese Japanese Travel Essentials Introductory Japanese I Japanese II Spanish Spanish Travel Essentials Workshop Accelerated Introductory Spanish I Spanish II Private Learning [...]

Join Us For Our Japanese New Year Potluck We would like to invite you to our Japanese New Year Potluck on Saturday, January 10th from 12-2pm at Bend Language Institute. Bring your favorite Japanese-inspired dish and family to this delicious event. We’ll share some Japanese recipes as well for you to take home and try out. This is a free, community event and all are welcome. We look forward to seeing you there! ✅ Please RSVP to bendlanguageinstitute@gmail.com.  

Italian at BLI: My New Year’s Resolution That Became a Boarding Pass to Adventure Opinion Piece by Beth Mazza Robertson | 5 minute read The New Year is a natural time for reinvention — a season of resolutions, bucket lists, and an exhausted return to normal. For me, January always feels like a giant exhale after the holidays: the kids head back to their real lives, the house looks a bit bare without all the colorful holiday decor, but I finally have time to catch my breath. In that calm, I often reflect on the year behind me and consider what [...]