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We celebrate National French Week (November 4-10) and the 2025 theme, Design your Future with French, with a special LLChat podcast episode from our series Québécois Poets & Writers.  Xavière Hardy is a distinguished writer and specialist in Video Game Production Management from Montreal. She's the author of acclaimed books such as "Follement écrivaines" and "Ne passez pas par la case départ." Her career spans significant roles in the literary and gaming industries, including managing major projects like Hyper Scape and For Honor at Ubisoft. Additionally, she serves on the board of Femmes de Parole, actively enriching poetic and intercultural dialogues. Our sincere thanks to Dr. Peter Schulman for hosting and sharing this course interview.  We are grateful for the editing skills of Ibrahima Wann. Send us a text

We are delighted to kick off the new season of LLChat with our popular series on Virtual Reality for World Languages and Cultures Using ImmerseMe, featuring ODU student Lauren Westcott. Lauren graduated in May 2025 with a major in English and a concentration in technical writing. In her interview, she describes her immersive French learning as "a rewarding and fulfilling experience to be able to learn about the way that other people do things. It gives you an entirely different perspective on your own life." Listen to how ImmerseMe's virtual reality and AI have made a positive impact on her language learning. Check out Lauren's full story in our episode below.  Our thanks to Arielle Rodgers for hosting this spectacular episode!  Send us a text

This is Part 2 of our interview with Caitilin Walsh in the series: The Language Services Industry. She is a professional translator, industry advocate, and past president of the American Translators Association (ATA). She served on ATA’s Education and Pedagogy Committee. Ms. Walsh also served on the executive committee of the Joint National Committee for Languages. An ATA-certified French-English translator, she produces translations for the computer industry and food lovers alike. She is a graduate of Willamette University (Oregon) and the Université de Strasbourg, France. She teaches ethics and business practices at the Translation and Interpreting Institute at Bellevue College.  This episode is from an earlier interview. Send us a text

LLChat is honored to have Caitilin Walsh as our first guest to the new series: The Language Services Industry (Part 1). She is a professional translator, industry advocate, and past president of the American Translators Association (ATA). She served on ATA’s Education and Pedagogy Committee. Ms. Walsh also served on the executive committee of the Joint National Committee for Languages. An ATA-certified French-English translator, she produces translations for the computer industry and food lovers alike. She is a graduate of Willamette University (Oregon) and the Université de Strasbourg, France. She teaches ethics and business practices at the Translation and Interpreting Institute at Bellevue College.  This episode is from an earlier interview. Send us a text

The World Cultural Studies degree program at ODU shapes leaders and thinkers fluent in intercultural understanding and global collaboration. In this episode from our series, This Global Life, Dr. Lee Slater welcomes ODU student, Julius Clark. Julius is a student preparing for graduation with a Bachelor of Arts degree in World Cultural Studies and a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology. In this episode, Dr. Slater and Julius discuss the global lives of students today and their creative paths to address world issues.  This interview was recorded at an earlier date in Spring 2024.  Send us a text

LLChat is pleased to welcome Dr. Lee Slater as host of our new series, This Global Life. In our first episode to the series, Dr. Slater welcomes panelists Dr. Waqar Azeem (Binghamton University), Ms. Nimisha Sinha (Binghamton University), and Dr. Lopamudra Basu (University of Wisconsin-Stout). The goal of this conversation is to explore how cultural forms of bearing witness intervene in the politics and technologies of human rights around the globe.  For more information on this discussion, please refer to the following links: 1. Art Title: Installation    Artist: Mahwish Chishty    Source: https://www.mahachishty.com/new-projects#/the-reaper/ 2. Art Title: Stealth    Artist: Mahwish Chishty     Source: https://www.mahachishty.com/drone-art-series 3. Art Title: ME: Portraiture in the Age of Facial Recognition     Artist: Kathryn Brimblecombe-Fox     Source: https://kathrynbrimblecombeart.blogspot.com/2021/04/me-portraiture-in-age-of-facial.html 4. Art Title: Drone: Enduring Presence (Meta Landing)     Artist: Kathryn Brimblecombe-Fox     Source: https://kathrynbrimblecombeart.blogspot.com/2017/09/drone-enduring-presence-meta-landing.html Send us a text

We are joined today by our guest, Émilie Rivard, a beloved Québécoise writer of over 100 children’s and young adult books such as Really and Truly, Ma vie autour d’une tasse John Deere, Le bonheur au bout de la laisse, C’est ma maman!, Petite plante deviendra monstre, et sur le pot les Zétoiles! Terreur dans la classe de sixième, Le raton terrible, Spag, Marcher sur une ligne de trottoir, ça jamais !, Le Bas-Saint-Laurent, Atchoum, les mensonges !  and countless other delightful and charming works. She has also written for magazines and television. Her novel 1ère avenue won the Prix Jeunesse des libraires in 2018 Rivard studied creative writing at Université Laval in Quebec City and focused her writing on imagination and creativity. She writes regularly for Les Explorateurs.  Our deep appreciation to Dr. Peter Schulman for hosting this episode. Send us a text

We are pleased to welcome Dr. Peter Schulman back to LLChat as a guest on our series, Virtual Reality for World Languages & Cultures Using ImmerseMe. Professor Schulman participated in a grant-funded research project at ODU to explore virtual reality with his advanced-level students. He seamlessly integrated the ImmerseMe lessons into his Business French course for students to practice in real-world scenarios. Listen to the details of his experience and what he believes is a game changer for learning and teaching world languages.  Our thanks to Joelle Ghosn for her expertise in hosting this interview.     Send us a text

We welcome Kimberly Mckinnis to our series on Virtual Reality for World Languages and Cultures Using ImmerseMe where she will share her experiences on emerging technologies to learn French. Professor McKinnis is an adjunct faculty member in the Department of Art at Old Dominion University and Lake Taylor High School, as well as a member of the glass studio team at the Chrysler Museum of Art. She holds an M.F.A. in Art (Exhibition Design) from California State University in Fullerton, California. In her studio practice, she utilizes a variety of media including silver, glass, video, and performance. Her work has been exhibited nationally and internationally and has been featured in publications such as the annual New Glass Review by the Corning Museum of Glass. Professor McKinnis is the winner of the Silver Global Citizen Award for the 2023 ImmerseMe Cup and was at the top 9% of over 1,750 competitors worldwide!   Our gratitude goes to Ayat Yousef for expertly hosting this episode. Send us a text

We continue our LLChat podcast series on TalkAbroad and an interview with Professor Warren Warsaw. He is an Adjunct Instructor of French in the Department of World Languages and Cultures at Old Dominion University and is the World Languages Department Chairman at Norfolk Academy in Norfolk, Virginia. Our appreciation to Ayat Yousef for hosting this episode with Mr. Warsaw. Send us a text

Welcome to LLChat! It is a pleasure to return to our popular series on TalkAbroad and e-Portfolios with our guest, Travis Wiggins. Travis studied Game Design at Old Dominion University with a minor in Japanese. He has had a love of the Japanese culture since childhood. This interview was recorded during the fall 2023 semester. Our thanks to Ayat Yousef for her hosting talents.    Send us a text

Welcome to LLChat's new series, Hispanic Poets and Writers! Our special guest for this first episode is Enid López Reed. She is the author of Kachi (2023), Cuentos de mi tierra: Puerto Rico (2022), El sueño de un marino (2022), and Borikén - 1493 (2022).  Maria Gomez from Old Dominion University's Department of World Languages is our host. This interview is in Spanish.   Send us a text

We are joined today by our special guest, Dr. Michel Audette, Associate Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Old Dominion University. Born and raised in Canada, Dr. Audette earned his Bachelor's degree in Engineering at McGill University, Master's degree in Electrical Engineering at the École Polytechnique and, later, his Ph. D in Biomedical Engineering at McGill University in Montréal. In his research, he prioritizes medical simulation, surgery planning, and the potential of robotic surgery. Alongside recent publications on brain simulation and STEM education through 3D printing workshops, he has authored conference papers and articles on medical imaging and simulation. His work has brought him to three continents with French, Japanese, and German speaking cities.     Many thanks to our talented hosting team, Alexis Osipovs and Ayat Yousef! Send us a text

We are delighted to interview Dr. Jay Walker, Assistant Professor of Economics in the Department of Economics at Old Dominion University, where his fields of interest are Applied Microeconomics, Labor Economics, and the Economics of Education. Dr. Walker received his B.S. in Economics and Finance from Arkansas Tech University and a MBA from the University of Mississippi. He worked professionally as an analyst in the insurance and retail industries. Following his Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Memphis, he taught at Niagara University in western New York state prior to joining Old Dominion University.  In his interview, Dr. Walker shares his travel experiences "with a purpose," the prestigious Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program award, e-Portfolios, and living in Chile, Mexico, Japan, and China! We are grateful to Alexis Osipovs for such an engrossing interview.  Send us a text

We are delighted to kick off our new season of LLChat with our series, French Musicians, Composers, and Discoveries. Our guest, Renée Anne Louprette, is an internationally renowned organist associated with distinguished music programs in New York City, the Arts at Trinity Wall Street, the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola. She is Assistant Professor of Music at Bard College. She has directed the organ program at Rutgers University, served as a faculty member at the Manhattan School of Music, and is director of the National Competition in Organ Improvisation for the American Guild Organists.  Louprette has performed with the Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra, Voices of Ascension, Clarion Music Society, American Symphony Orchestra, Los Angeles Dance Project, Disney Hall in Los Angeles, and the Oratorio Society of New York. She was awarded a Premier Prix - mention très bien from the Conservatoire National de Région de Toulouse, France and a Diplôme Supérieur in organ performance from the Centre d’Etudes Supérieures de Musique et Danse de Toulouse.  We are grateful to our magnificent team of hosts, Dr. Peter Schulman and Alexis Osipovs. Send us a text