Rosetta Stone Celebrates International Education Week with Launch of Student Blog Series

Arlington, VA, Nov. 13, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Beginning today, students from across the country will lend their voices to a new student blog series from language learning leader Rosetta Stone (NYSE: RST). Through a partnership with Global Citizen Year (GCY)—an award-winning social enterprise on a mission to reinvent the post-high school gap year as a launch pad for the next generation of changemakers, innovators and leaders—Rosetta Stone will feature blogs from both current and alumni student “Fellows.”  The personal blogs will showcase students’ experiences abroad during their gap year, highlighting how language and cultural immersion play a critical role in the overall experience.  One-hundred and thirty current Fellows, who departed in September, were given access to Rosetta Stone in more than 24 languages as they prepared for their time abroad.

Debuting in conjunction with the start of International Education Week, the blog creates an opportunity to celebrate the benefits of international education and student exchange worldwide, as well as the importance of creating global citizens who are culturally aware and prepared to enter an increasingly diverse workforce. The inaugural blog will be introduced by Abby Falik, Founder and CEO of GCY, who has led the organization’s efforts to empower students through a year-long global immersion with an intensive language learning experience that has proven to maximize college readiness, ignite a passion for language learning, and set Fellows up for a life of impact.

“Global Citizen Year provides a path for students to achieve a global perspective that uses cultural experiences to unlock passion, potential and purpose, and we know how critical communication in-country is to a successful experience,” said Falik. “We’re excited to team up with a trusted leader like Rosetta Stone to share the stories of our talented and diverse students and alumni who’ve discovered new potential through language learning and structured immersion.”

The new series will feature a mix of written and video blogs from students, kicking off with the voices of former GCY Fellows, now college students, who will share first-hand accounts of their year-long global leadership journey and how language proficiency impacted their experience.  Throughout 2018, blogs from Fellows currently in-country will debut chronicling their experiences learning their host country’s language with Rosetta Stone.

“We think it fitting to launch this blog series at the start of International Education Week, which aims to promote programs that prepare Americans for a global environment and attract future leaders from abroad to study, learn and exchange experiences," said Lisa Frumkes, Senior Director of Content Development, Rosetta Stone. “It’s critical to arm students with the tools they need to succeed, and we’re proud to be able to provide these future leaders with our learning solutions to help them develop the linguistic and cultural competencies needed to thrive.”  

GCY envisions a world where gap year before college becomes common expectation and opportunity for students from all backgrounds - transforming education and launching a new pipeline of leaders who reflect our country’s diversity, and who bring global skills and moral courage to leadership across all sectors. Through a mix of cultural immersion, experiential learning and leadership training, the Fellows develop the language fluency and global skills needed to be leaders across countries, cultures and sectors.  This year’s GCY cohort is the organization’s largest since its launch in 2010. Students undergo an intense onboarding process and leadership training prior to departure to one of four host-countries—Brazil, Ecuador, Senegal or India—where they spend the school year living with a host family while apprenticing with local organizations to support community needs through apprenticeships in various areas such as teaching, health, ecotourism and research.  For more information on Rosetta Stone or Global Citizen Year, visit www.rosettastone.com or www.globalcitizenyear.org.

About Rosetta Stone
Rosetta Stone Inc. (NYSE: RST) is dedicated to changing people’s lives through the power of language and literacy education. The company’s innovative digital solutions drive positive learning outcomes for the inspired learner at home or in schools and workplaces around the world.

Founded in 1992, Rosetta Stone’s language division uses cloud-based solutions to help all types of learners read, write, and speak more than 30 languages. Lexia Learning, Rosetta Stone's literacy education division, was founded more than 30 years ago and is a leader in the literacy education space. Today, Lexia helps students build fundamental reading skills through its rigorously researched, independently evaluated, and widely respected instruction and assessment programs.  

For more information, visit www.rosettastone.com.  “Rosetta Stone” is a registered trademark or trademark of Rosetta Stone Ltd. in the United States and other countries.