Capital Region Language Center offers gift certificates for classes in nearly a dozen languages
Forgot the fruit basket or fuzzy blanket. This year, choose a gift that creates memories, connects loved ones, improves brain function, and helps employees succeed in the year ahead.
For nearly 20 years, the Capital Region Language Center (CRLC) has been teaching world languages. They include Spanish, Arabic, Korean and American Sign Language. Classes are available for children, adults, schools, and businesses. They are offered online and in-person, at their school off Wolf Road in Colonie.
Five Reasons to Give the Gift of Language
Kim Andersen, Founding Director of CRLC, offers five reasons to add language classes to your gift list this season:
- Surprise the person who has everything: Sick of hunting around for something to delight that hard to please family member? Give them a new experience by signing them up to learn a language. Andersen says you can pick which language or let the recipient choose from nearly a dozen languages being offered.
- Prepare for the trip of a lifetime: Andersen recalls a husband who bought a gift certificate for his wife so she could start brushing up on French before a trip the next year. After Covid, many people are planning big trips. Learning the native language can make travel easier and more fun.
- Stay connected to friends or family in different places: CRLC offers classes online, so friends or family members can “meet” each week via video, sharing the experience of learning a new language together.
- Improve the brain’s neuroplasticity: Studies show learning a new language rearranges your brain, creating new neural connections and pathways. A video class can be valuable and convenient for an older relative who may live alone or be stuck indoors all winter.
- Improve communication at work: Andersen says CRLC has helped university professors, video game designers, union members and sales representatives improve their language skills. Whether English or another language, employees can set up convenient, one-on-one video sessions to focus on pronunciation, writing, or presentation skills.
Support a Local and Woman-Owned Business
Purchasing a gift certificate from Capital Region Language Center also supports a local, woman-owned business. CRLC began when Andersen started teaching two Spanish classes a week, while raising her young children in Ballston Spa. Today, a team of more than 20 teachers provide instruction in nearly a dozen languages as well as providing communication training and translation services.
Purchase a CRLC Gift Certificate
To purchase a gift certificate, Andersen recommends visiting www.crlcalbany.org for a list of languages offered. Fill out a form, email infoatCRLC@gmail.com or call 518-729-5407 to learn more or get started.