Spring 2026 LLL Event: "Where Can World Languages Take You?": Events - CeLT: News & Events: Center for Language Technology: Indiana University

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Spring 2026 LLL Event: "Where Can World Languages Take You?"

Spring 2026 LLL Event: “Where Can World Languages Take You?”

Wednesday, March 11, 2026, 5:45 PM – Thursday, February 27, 2025, 7:30 PM

Ernie Pyle Hall 214 and on Zoom
940 E. 7th Street
Bloomington, IN 47405

The spring 2026 Language Learners' Lounge event, "Where Can World Languages Take You?," is organized by the Center for Language Technology (CeLT) and the Walter Center for Career Achievement .

At this event, you will hear short presentations of success stories from IU students and alumni whose language studies have inspired their academic and career journeys. The speaker panel will be comprised of three student presenters (both undergraduate and graduate) from a range of academic programs and one alumnus presenter:

Dr. Valentyna Filimonova, Content Strategist at Microsoft and IU alumna (M.A. ’14, Linguistics/Hispanic Linguistics; PhD ’20, Linguistics/Hispanic Linguistics)
Violet Peotter, an undergraduate student in East Asian Languages and Cultures and International Studies and FLAS recipient (Chinese)
Kathleen Silkes, an undergraduate student in Political Science and Russian Studies (Russian Flagship)
Nya Thornton, a graduate student in International Studies and FLAS recipient (Japanese)

Dr. Valentyna Filimonova

Headshot of Dr. Filimonova

Dr. Valentyna Filimonova is a PhD-level social researcher and program manager with 13 years of experience. At Microsoft, she combines research and project management to optimize communication strategies, ensuring that they align with Microsoft's mission and OKRs while solving the pain points of diverse audiences. Her academic focus was on international communications and Hispanic culture. However, her sincere interest in serving global and local communities led her to take and create opportunities in socially conscious research, solutions, and communication. As a natural problem-solver, innovator, and community builder (INTJ-A), she has founded and directed the International Coworking & Professional Development (IC&PD) Lab along with other successful communities of practice. Besides being a content strategist in the technology sector, she is also a forensic linguistics consultant, academic advisor, and an alt-ac mentor.

Violet Peotter

Headshot of Violet Peotter

Violet Peotter is a senior at IU studying East Asian Languages and Cultures and International Studies. She is a fifth-year Chinese student who was awarded the FLAS Fellowship for the 2025–26 academic year by the Center for the Study of Global Change. Outside of HLS, Violet is the vice president of the IU Debate Team and is looking forward to being a Project Manager at Epic Systems after graduation.

Kathleen Silkes

Headshot of Kathleen Silkes

Kathleen Silkes is a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences. She double majors in Political Science and Russian studies. She is a student in the Russian Flagship program. She has studied abroad in Almaty, Kazakhstan and Yerevan, Armenia. She is gearing up to return to Kazakhstan to spend the next academic year studying Russian.

Nya Thornton

Headshot of Nya Thornton

Nya Thornton is a first year MA student in the International Studies program and the FLAS recipient for Japanese. She is interested in contemporary Japanese society, particularly the portrayal of race and gender in the media and the influence of Black and African American culture in Japan. After graduation, she aspires to work in a career focused on public diplomacy and foster cross-cultural connections between Japan and the United States. She currently supports IU's 21^st Century Japan Politics & Society Initiative (21JPSI) as a part-time student assistant. Outside of her academic studies, Nya is a proud member of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc.