About the Village

At Waldsee, our German Language Village, we do Deutsch. On the lake. At the beach. On the Fußball field. At the Café. In the Gasthof (dining hall). In the cabin. Have fun learning everyday German you can really use with friends and in games, arts, sports, cooking, baking, environmental, historical and cultural activities. The authentic architecture of Waldsee will transport you to another world, where the immersive experience makes the language come alive. From the cabins to the Gasthof, to the innovative BioHaus, Waldsee inspires villagers to live the language and culture of Germany.

Experience Waldsee

 

Summer 2027 Schedule

Session descriptions coming soon. Registration opens Oct. 15.

Language Session Type Session Category Ages Start Date End Date
German Family One Week   6/14/2027 6/19/2027
German Youth One Week Ages 8-12 6/14/2027 6/19/2027
German Apprentice Four Week Ages 16-18 6/21/2027 7/17/2027
German Dual Credit Four Week Grades 11-12 6/21/2027 7/17/2027
German Youth Credit Two Week Grades 9-12 6/21/2027 7/3/2027
German Youth Credit Four Week Grades 9-12 6/21/2027 7/17/2027
German Youth Two Week Ages 8-15 6/21/2027 7/3/2027
German Youth Four Week Ages 11-18 6/21/2027 7/17/2027
German Youth Credit Two Week Grades 9-12 7/5/2027 7/17/2027
German Youth Two Week Ages 10-18 7/5/2027 7/17/2027
German Apprentice Four Week Ages 16-18 7/19/2027 8/14/2027
German Youth Credit Two Week Grades 9-12 7/19/2027 7/31/2027
German Youth Credit Four Week Grades 9-12 7/19/2027 8/14/2027
German Youth One Week Ages 12-15 7/19/2027 7/24/2027
German Youth Two Week Ages 10-18 7/19/2027 7/31/2027
German Youth Four Week Ages 11-18 7/19/2027 8/14/2027
German Youth One Week Ages 15-18 7/26/2027 7/31/2027
German Youth Credit Two Week Grades 9-12 8/2/2027 8/14/2027
German Youth Credit Two Week Grades 9-12 8/2/2027 8/14/2027
German Youth One Week Ages 8-11 8/2/2027 8/7/2027
German Youth Two Week Ages 8-16 8/2/2027 8/14/2027
German Day Camp One Week Ages 7-11 8/16/2027 8/20/2027
German Family One Week   8/16/2027 8/21/2027
German Youth One Week Ages 8-14 8/16/2027 8/21/2027

 

Upcoming German Camps & Programs

German High School Credit--Märchenwald

  • Dates: August 02 - August 14, 2027
  • Location: Bemidji
  • Ages: Grades 8th - 12th
  • Cost: $3395.00

Minimum registration fee $400 der Märchenwald Credit - Waldsee takes participants back in time to experience a unique combination of the Middle Ages and theater. The only program to come complete with its own storyline, der Märchenwald challenges its participants to create a kingdom from a path through the woods, a theater in a forest clearing, and authentic medieval persons in themselves. The result is a combination of language, history, arts and crafts, music, creative writing, literature, ongoing role-playing, tons of teamwork, and, finally, a formal knighting ceremony. Our two-week high school credit program allows villagers to earn a semester's worth of high school credit in just two weeks! In addition to classes with formal language instruction, credit villagers can choose from a variety of elective activities, as well as classic summer camp favorites like campfires, singing songs, and more - all in the language of the Village. These programs welcome language learners of all levels. Fully accredited by Cognia, credit programs include standardized curriculums, assessments, and transcripts to meet your local school system’s requirements. Please check with your school district in advance to ensure that credit from Cognia will be accepted if you wish to have the credit reflected on your villager’s high school transcript. High school credit sessions are designed for villagers entering grades 9 and up in Fall 2027.

Registration closes July 05, 2027

German High School Credit--STEM focus

  • Dates: August 02 - August 14, 2027
  • Location: Bemidji
  • Ages: Grades 8th - 12th
  • Cost: $3395.00

Minimum registration fee $400 STEM-D Credit - Villagers in this program create a portfolio of projects that develop their skills in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math - all in German. Hands-on projects are the key, geared to a villager’s own level and background, both in German and in each of the STEM skill areas. Villagers conduct experiments in the Waldsee BioHaus, North America’s first certified passive house—a building designed to use 85 percent less energy than a comparable American building. Our two-week high school credit program allows villagers to earn a semester's worth of high school credit in just two weeks! In addition to classes with formal language instruction, credit villagers can choose from a variety of elective activities, as well as classic summer camp favorites like campfires, singing songs, and more - all in the language of the Village. These programs welcome language learners of all levels. Fully accredited by Cognia, credit programs include standardized curriculums, assessments, and transcripts to meet your local school system’s requirements. Please check with your school district in advance to ensure that credit from Cognia will be accepted if you wish to have the credit reflected on your villager’s high school transcript. High school credit sessions are designed for villagers entering grades 9 and up in Fall 2027.

Registration closes July 05, 2027

German Youth One Week

  • Dates: August 16 - August 21, 2027
  • Location: Bemidji
  • Ages: Ages 8 - 14
  • Cost: $1290.00

Minimum registration fee: $150 Our one-week programs are perfect for villagers who are ready to experience an overnight camp but can't fit a longer program into busy summer schedules, or aren't quite ready for a longer time away from home. These programs provide an opportunity to explore the language through small and large group learning activities and immersive daily experiences. Plus, you'll get to do all the fun arts, crafts, games and cultural exploration of the Language Village camp experience, along with traditional summer camp activities like campfires, singing songs, and making new friends. These programs welcome language learners of all levels. This session runs concurrently with a Family Week program, so villagers may take part in whole-Village fun and activities! Adults in family programs that overlap with youth overnight sessions are required to complete a background check.

Registration closes July 19, 2027

German Family Week

  • Dates: August 16 - August 21, 2027
  • Location: Bemidji
  • Ages: N/A
  • Cost: $985.00

Join us for a global learning vacation for the entire family—right here in Minnesota! Overnight family weeks and weekends are a great way to spend time together, discover new international foods, play games, make crafts, enjoy music and take part in some old-fashioned outdoor fun. And while you’re all busy having such a good time, together you’ll experience the wonder of speaking a new language through our fun and natural immersion environment. Invite friends, aunts, uncles and grandparents—or whatever family means to you! For more information on family programming, visit https://www.concordialanguagevillages.org/year-round-programs/family-weeks-weekends/. Family programs are designed for family units that include at least one adult (age 19 or older) and one child (age 18 or younger). Individual adults should register for our Adult Programs instead. Adult programs provide more intensive opportunities for language learning geared specifically towards adult learners. Individual adults not attending with minor children may request an exception to this policy, please contact clvregister@cord.edu to start this process. All attendees, regardless of age, need to register individually for the Family Programs. Tuition is as follows: Adult participants: $955 each Youth participants: $775 each Participants ages 3 and under: Free. All paying participants must pay a $100 registration fee to save a spot. This session runs concurrently with a youth overnight program. In order to comply with safety standards recommended by the American Camp Association, all adult participants 18 and older registered for this Family Week will be required to complete a background check.

Registration closes July 19, 2027

German Adventure Day Camp

  • Dates: August 16 - August 20, 2027
  • Location: Bemidji
  • Ages: Ages 7 - 11
  • Cost: $420.00

Minimum registration fee: $100 Our Adventure Day Camp programs are perfect for younger villagers who want to experience new languages and cultures in a fun and supportive learning environment but are not quite ready for an overnight experience yet. Day camps provide an opportunity to explore the language of the Village through games, arts & crafts, singing, sports, and more. Lunch is provided each day, and day campers will have opportunities to participate in some activities alongside overnight campers. Program runs Monday-Friday 9 am to 5 pm. This session runs concurrently with a Family Week program, so villagers may take part in whole-Village fun and activities!

Registration closes August 02, 2027

Learn About Scholarship Opportunities

Need-based scholarships are available for German summer youth immersion sessions through the Passport Fund. Scholarships are based on a family’s adjusted gross income, number of dependents and the length of the session.

Additionally, the Minnesota Office of Higher Education offers a $1,000 stipend for Minnesota students who qualify for free or reduced lunch at school.

Find Additional Information Here

 

Our Location: Waldsee

Turtle River Lake

When you see Waldsee for the first time, you might be surprised to find yourself transported to a small German village. Every detail from the Bahnhof (train station) to the Gasthof (dining hall) immerses you in German life and culture. Even the modern-day Passivhaus standard of “green” building is reflected in our Waldsee BioHaus, the first building of its kind in North America. Cabins at Waldsee are comfortable, safe, beautiful reflections of German architecture. Most program participants are housed in five winterized cabins (restroom and shower facilities are located within the buildings) with sleeping rooms housing 12-16 each on bunk beds. Waldsee also has a sauna building with private showers and bathroom facilities. Birch, oak and pine forests offer shade on hot summer days. This site is known for spectacular sunsets, a cozy feel and the sound of loons.

9550 Ruppstrasse Rd NE, Bemidji, MN 56601
 
 
 

Jon Berndt Olsen

Dean
Berndt is an Associate Professor of History at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where he teaches courses in German, European and Public History. He has held numerous fellowships, including from the Fulbright Commission, the Robert Bosch Foundation and the Social Science Research Council. He is currently writing a book on the history of East German travel culture. In his free time, Berndt is an avid woodworker and baker.
 

Angela Johanna Schneider

Dean

Johanna has worked in many roles at Concordia Language Villages since 2007. She has a degree in Education and has spent time studying and working in Magedeburg, Bonn, Minden and Linz, Austria. The Waldsee people and community are what keeps her coming back to play in the woods and on the lake.

 

Maddie Thusnelda Flom-Staab

Program Leader

Thusnelda is a lifetime Concordia Language Villages villager and counselor at Waldsee and Lac du Bois. She has led the Family Program at Waldsee since 2021 and loves it! Thusnelda is a German teacher at a middle school in St. Paul, Minn., and always looks forward to her time at the Villages.

 

David (Heiko) Lund

Program Leader

David Heiko Lund leads the German Adult Weeks in the spring and fall where he leads with a flexible teaching style, piano and song leading skills and a cheerful and inclusive spirit.

Fluent in both German and Norwegian, Heiko holds a degree in German and Psychology from St. Olaf and was a Fulbright/DAAD Recipient in Germany for two years. Since 2018, he has taught German in the Seattle Area German Academy of the German Language School of Seattle. Previously, Heiko was an Air Force chaplain at the NATO Headquarters for Northern Europe in Stavanger, Norway for 5 years and prior to that, served as a Vicar for the American Church in Berlin.

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Government & Corporate Programs

A global outlook is important for success in the domestic and international arena. Concordia Language Villages offers customized corporate, government and military training programs to meet the specific needs of our clients.

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