Summer of 2017 will hold a new opportunity for high school students from around the state hoping to participate in the Indiana University Honors Program in Foreign Languages (IUHPFL). Since 1962, Indiana high school students have been traveling abroad with IUHPFL. This past summer students traveled to ten sites in Austria, Chile, China, France, Mexico, and Spain. Now, a new site is opening located in Osaka, Japan.
Each summer more than 260 students from around Indiana spend five to six weeks abroad with host families where they speak only the target language. They attend classes in the mornings, have planned activities in the afternoons, and go on excursions to enhance their cultural awareness. Most sites participate in community engagement and volunteer activities which provide the students with an opportunity to develop broad connections with the communities that, for many, become like a second home. IUHPFL's combination of intensive academic instruction, a mandatory language commitment to speak only in the target language while abroad, and the full-time integration into a host family allow students to participate in a total immersion experience.
Due to the increase of Indiana high schools offering Japanese classes, IUHPFL recognized a need to give students opportunities to study abroad in Japan. According to the Managing Director of IUHPFL, Loni Dishong, "Osaka was identified as an ideal location for IUHPFL students due to its combination of modern amenities and old world charm, friendly residents and beautiful natural surroundings. We are delighted to offer this opportunity to high school Japanese learners in Indiana."
IUHPFL will begin accepting applications via their website in mid-September from Indiana sophomores, junior, or seniors who are in Level III (or higher) of language study in Chinese, French, German, Japanese, or Spanish.