WHO WE ARE
The Czech Language Foundation is a 501(c)3 foundation formed to promote Czech language and culture at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and in the state of Nebraska.
WHAT WE DO
Dedicated to the promotion, improvement, enhancement and maintenance of Czech Language instruction at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and to the promotion and preservation of Czech language and culture within the state of Nebraska.
Scholarships
$300 CLF SCHOLARSHIPS FOR ALL STUDENTS ENROLLING IN CZECH CLASSES
Due to the generosity of the Nebraska Czech Community in conjunction with the Czech Language Foundation, all students who enroll in a Czech class on-campus at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln receive a $300 scholarship. The required form and instructions are presented to students the first week of classes.
Apply Now
Scholarships are available for Fall 2011. The textbook for the class, Nezbytna Cestina is provided free of charge.
For questions, or more information, call Dr. Miluse Saskova-Pierce, (402) 472-1336, or Dr. Joseph Swoboda, (402) 488-4867
Czech language classes at UNL over 100 years
The UNL Czech Language Program celebrates the fact that in 1907 students first started to learn Czech language and literature at UNL.
The program is one of only seven in the USA offering 3 or more years of continuous instruction and one of the oldest ones. The program offers a Czech language minor after six semesters of coursework. The UNL Czech program has been a very successful one, thanks to its instructors and a number of outstanding students who have also been engaged in the cultural programs of the Czech Komensky Club.
The Czech Program was started in 1907 by chancellor Andrews, after members of the Czech community and Czech legislators in the state of Nebraska asked UNL to include it in its curriculum. The Czech language instruction in Nebraska is closely tied to the history of the Czech Komensky Club, named for Jan Amos Komensky, or Comenius, the pioneer educator. Conceived by UNL students in December 1903, and officially established in 1904, it became a nursery for influential personalities in Nebraska political and cultural life.
Past members include state and U.S. politicians such as Roman Hruska, Otto Kotouc, Joseph Vosoba, and Rudy Vrtiska; poets Ferdinand Musil, Jeffrey Hrbek, and Hrbek's sister the writer, politician, and educator, Dr. Sarka Hrbek. The Nebraska born Dr. Olga Stastny, recipient of the French Croix De Guerre and many other international medals for her work as a doctor and organizer of international health care, was also a member.
According to the club constitution, its aim was to form a bond among Czech-Americans and to provide a model of cultural association to other university settings, where students could study Czech language, history and literature first informally, and later formally, in regular courses.
The Czech language and literature program founded in 1907 replaced the informal instruction within the club with formal course work, but it continued to involve students in the Czech Program in the cultural program offered to the university.