Tatiana is the lead instructor for the Concordia Language Training Center Russian immersion programs. She holds a degree in Foreign Language Teaching from Northern (Arctic) Federal University in her hometown of Arkhangelsk, Russia, where she taught all levels of Russian in winter and summer immersion programs for international students for six years. She taught at Lewis & Clark College in Oregon through the Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant Program. She is passionate about creating inclusive, engaging, and culturally rich learning environments that inspire students to communication with confidence and curiously about the Russian-speaking world.

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Paul has been an instructor in Chinese at Concordia College since 2020. He has also been actively involved with Concordia Language Villages’ Chinese program, Sen Lin Hu, each summer since 2017 and teaches in the adult intensive Language Training Center programs. He holds bachelor’s degrees in Linguistics and Chinese Education and a master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction. His study of Chinese includes coursework both in the United States and at Changchun, China. Prior to teaching at Concordia, Paul taught in public middle and high schools in Wisconsin and Minnesota. From 1989 to 2006, he lived in Taiwan, where he taught English as a Foreign Language, and later spent a year in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. He speaks Mandarin Chinese and has proficiency in Taiwanese, German, Spanish, and Indonesian.

Kate Bjelde recently completed a 2.5-year civilian tour at the Pentagon, advising senior leaders at the Department of the Army and Office of the Secretary of Defense on policy regarding critical infrastructure cybersecurity, weapon system cybersecurity, AI literacy, and legislative affairs. She previously led Special Programs at Thomson Reuters, supporting innovation at the Department of Defense and national security agencies, and held roles at the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency and Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center. Kate holds a master’s in Counterterrorism Studies from King’s College London and a bachelor’s from Concordia College in Moorhead, MN.

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Following a 21-year career as a U.S. Foreign Service Officer, Anne retired from the State Department in 2023.  During her career she primarily worked on issues related to Africa and Asia. Her overseas assignments included the United Arab Emirates, Afghanistan, China, Pakistan, Mauritania and South Africa, as well as Washington, DC. Her final assignment was as the U.S. Consul General in Durban, South Africa. Originally from Minneapolis, Anne now lives in the Twin Cities where she is involved in a variety of non-profits and regularly lectures  on global issues. To satisfy the creative side of her brain, she also works at a flower shop. She has a bachelor's degree in Urban Studies from the University of Minnesota and a master's degree in National Security Strategy from the National War College in Washington, DC. She speaks Spanish, French, and some Mandarin.