April 25–26, 2025 — The American Council of Teachers of Russian (ACTR) marked a significant milestone this spring, commemorating five decades of leadership in Russian language education and scholarship. The virtual ACTR 50th anniversary conference, “Teaching and Learning Russian as a Second and Heritage Language,” convened more than 350 scholars, educators, and policymakers from 254 colleges and universities across 24 countries.
“As geopolitical and linguistic landscapes continue to shift, the ACTR 50th anniversary conference played an essential role in fostering a sustainable global engagement by showcasing innovative approaches to Russian language teaching, promoting cultural exchange, and strengthening international educational partnerships,” remarked Dr. Olga Klimova, Director of the Russian Program at the University of Pittsburgh and ACTR President.
The conference featured two keynote speakers: Dr. Judith Kroll from the University of California, Irvine’s Center for the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory, who spoke about the cognitive science behind language acquisition, and Dr. Eleonora Suleimenova from Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, who discussed the shifting role of Russian in shaping language policy and cultural identities in Kazakhstan. Additional sessions explored the integration of cultural knowledge into the teaching of Russian, the application of artificial intelligence in instruction, accessibility in language education, and language acquisition in immersive overseas learning.
Honoring a Legacy, Inspiring the Future
Dr. Dan E. Davidson, ACTR Executive Director, Emeritus Professor of Russian (Bryn Mawr College) and American Councils’ Founding President, opened the conference with a presentation on the origins of ACTR. Until the mid-1970s, U.S. and Soviet-era linguists pursued their research and teaching in almost total isolation from one another.
The founders of ACTR benefited from a brief period of détente in U.S.-Soviet relations to expand contact among Russian language and American English specialists. Following a successful academic conference of U.S. and Soviet scholars organized at MIT and Amherst College in 1974, the founders gained support of colleagues and government funders to launch the first series of U.S.-Soviet collaborative textbooks and training programs for American scholars at the A. S. Pushkin Institute. In 1976, ACTR sent its first cohort of U.S. graduate students to study in Moscow, establishing the foundation for generations of educational exchange that transcended geopolitical divides.
ACTR began as an urgent effort to build U.S. expertise in Russian language and culture. But as the world grew more interconnected and the demand for cross-cultural skills expanded, ACTR recognized the need for a broader, more sustained and strategic approach to international engagement. In response, it launched new partnerships, expanded its reach, and ultimately established American Councils for International Education to carry that mission forward.
What started as a focused academic initiative has grown into a dynamic network spanning 140 countries and over 100,000 alumni—including 24,000 American students, educators, and scholars who have participated in Russian language immersion since 1976. This enduring legacy is anchored by a core belief: language is not a barrier, but a bridge to deeper understanding, cooperation, and shared progress.
As ACTR co-founder Dr. Richard Brecht commented, “The 50th anniversary conference was also an unprecedented display of the passion and vitality of the membership of ACTR today and of the educational mission we represent. This historical event was a welcome morale gift, and it will abide among the field’s most cherished memories.”
About ACTR
The American Council of Teachers of Russian (ACTR) was founded as an association of language and area professionals involved with Russian language, literature and linguistics. Membership is open to all persons with an interest in the study and teaching of the Russian language. Learn more about ACTR.