The Chattanooga School of Language is celebrating a decade of teaching languages by giving back to the community.
In honor of the language school’s tenth anniversary and as an expression of gratitude to the community for its support over the years, CSL will launch a “10 Days of Giving” series, starting on July 13. The last day of the series will be on July 22, which is the actual date when the business was founded ten years ago.
Over the course of the ten days (July 13-July 22), community members can enter to win various giveaways, including CSL merchandise, free language classes, gift certificates to a local restaurant and more. Instructions on how to enter will be provided on CSL’s Facebook and Instagram accounts.
CSL was founded in 2011 and offered only three languages: German, French and Spanish. Ten years later, CSL offers high-quality language instruction in more than 10 different languages to people of all ages, backgrounds, proficiency levels and reasons for learning through small classroom settings, flexible schedules and cultural engagement. Instruction is now available virtually and in person via group classes or customized lessons.
“Everything we do at CSL is about bringing people together from all walks of life, cultures and languages, and providing our students with the customized support they need to help them achieve their unique language learning goals – whatever those may be,” said Laurie Stevens, CSL Founder and CEO.
Stevens started the school because she personally was touched by the power of another language and culture different from her own and wanted to offer a similar experience to the people in her hometown of Chattanooga. She wanted to provide a more accessible way for anyone to learn another language – regardless of age, student status, background or address.
“There is a distinct line in the sand of my life that represents the person I was before I learned the Spanish language and the person I became – personally and professionally – after I committed to learning and loving the Spanish language and culture,” she said.
The mission of CSL is to create a more aware, educated and inclusive community through the teaching of language and culture. From day one, the purpose of CSL has been to provide high-quality language instruction while exposing students and community to the diverse cultures represented by each language. Whether in person in the Chattanooga area or virtually across cities, states and borders, CSL exists to bring people and cultures together.
Over the past decade, CSL has worked with local schools, businesses, non-profit organizations, families, professionals, retirees, and government leaders to provide language instruction in languages such as Spanish, German, French, Italian, Korean, American Sign Language, Japanese, Turkish, Chinese, Russian, Arabic, English as a Second Language, Portuguese, Romanian and Danish.
In 2018, CSL was named the Small Business of the Year (1-20 employees) by the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce. In the same year, the language school was the first-place recipient of the 2018 Idea Leap grant from Tennessee Valley Federal Credit Union for $20,000.
For more information on the Chattanooga School of Language, please visit www.chattanoogalanguage.com