English as a Second Language | University of Nebraska

Breaking the Language Barrier

Programs in English as a Second Language (PIESL) at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) is a special administrative unit of the Department of English. We serve the international and non-native English-speaking student communities by providing specialized language instruction and other services in preparation for or in conjunction with academic study. We hope that the pages in this web site are both interesting and informative, and that you will feel free to contact the PIESL office with any questions or comments about how we might help you further. You can reach us at:

Programs in English as a Second Language
Department of English
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
513 East Nebraska Hall
Lincoln, NE 68588-0507
Phone: (402) 472-1884
Fax: (402) 472-4636
E-mail: esl2@unl.edu

**The IEP Club meets on Thursdays at 2:30PM in room 531E Nebraska Hall**

**IEP Study Help every Tuesday from 2:30-3:20 in room 534E Nebraska Hall**

EVENTS GOING ON THIS WEEK:

HOPE EVERYONE HAS A GREAT WINTER BREAK!!!!!

*January 7-EPE testing begins

*January 8-First day of Winter 2013 session

*Arts for All- free Lied Center tickets for UNL students: marketplace.unl.edu/edcente

To learn more about the activities of PIESL, start by following the navigation buttons at the top of this and every main page in our web site. Documents of interest can be found by following the links in the sidebar to the left. Return to our home page at any time by clicking on the logo at the top of main pages. Enjoy!

*Admittance to the Intensive English Program does not guarantee admittance to UNL. Students should apply directly to Undergraduate Admissions or Graduate Admissions for admission to degree programs.

Meet our NEW Lecturers in the IEP!!

Nikki Menard: I have a B.A. in English and secondary Teaching Certificate from Nebraska Wesleyan University, and an M.A. in American Indian Studies from the Unvirsity of Arizona Tucson. I decided to teach in the Intensive English Program because I wanted experience teaching in a University setting and my friend Julie Abo encouraged me to apply for a substitute position within the program. I've enjoyed teaching in the IEP and the students are great! The best part of teaching so far is getting to know the students. I am looking forward to getting more involved with the program. I taught for the Lincoln Public Schools for the past 15 years. The most memorable moment was when one of my students who had been expelled three years in a row graduated from high school with my help. He made it!

Crystal Thiessen:

Returning from a year in Ukraine and looking to settle down in Kansas City for a bit, my husband and I both unexpectedly found ourselves in Lincoln this summer after he was offered a deal he couldn't refuse baking at Le Quartier bakery. Because of my experience in both ESL and EFL, including some time teaching with the IEP at the University of Central Missouri, I was lucky enough to find a position available here with the UNL IEP. I love working with a variety of students from all different cultural backgrounds, as well as with other instructors who have a passion for language-learning and teaching.

The best part about teaching EFL/ESL for me is when students engage with the English language in order to teach about their own cultures, traditions, and backgrounds to others. The best teachers are also students, and it's amazing to me how much we are constantly learning from the variety of students we have the opportunity to teach in this field.

While getting my master's degree in TESL, I actually taught travel and creative photography classes at the University of Central Missouri, and led one travel photography class on a photo trip to Ireland. After graduating, I was immediately hired on with UCM's IEP, and worked there for a year and a half before taking off to Japan's northernmost island of Hokkaido with my husband. What was supposed to be a one-year adventure turned into three as I taught at the Sapporo Intercultural and Technological High School, and my husband worked as the head chef for an Australian-run restaurant downtown. Before leaving Japan in 2011, I accepted a U.S. Department of State and Georgetown University English Language Fellowship, and taught at the East Ukrainian National University in Lugansk, Ukraine (basically, Russia!) for this past year. While my experiences teaching abroad were fantastic for numerous reasons, every one of my teaching endeavors have been memorable primarily because of the students themselves and the experiences we had sharing each others' cultures through English.

It may sound strange, but some of my most memorable moments in teaching have been when I've said "goodbye" to head on to a different teaching adventure. When you're going away, students really come out of the woodwork to show what kind of impact you've had on them during your time there through letters, cards, memory books, and photos. At times, it can be hard to see your influence on a class on a day-to-day basis, but when the reality sets in that you will no longer be their teacher, a lot of them really put forth some of the sweetest displays of gratitude, and they are the perfect things to remind you just why you do what you do whenever you're having an off-day (or week)!

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