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Maryland Language Science Center

Maryland Language Science Center

The creation of the Maryland Language Science Center represents a major commitment by the University of Maryland to language science as a strategic priority. Language is a critical part of the human experience, and the science of language has an exceptionally broad reach, combining basic science — from philosophy to neuroscience to computation — with applications in technology, education, and health. Through the Maryland Language Science Center, the university aims to bring together the diverse elements of language science in a way that has not previously been attempted. Anywhere.

The University of Maryland already hosts the largest and most integrated community of language scientists in North America, including 200+ faculty, researchers, and graduate students. Since 2008 the university has hosted an NSF-IGERT interdisciplinary graduate training program that has served as a catalyst for broader integrative efforts in language science, with 50 participating students and contributions from 50 faculty. A distinctive feature of the program has been students’ “ownership” of the program and their central role in leading events and activities. The University of Maryland is also home to two key ‘migrator’ centers that connect basic research to critical national needs in education and national security: the Center for Advanced Study of Language (CASL) and the National Foreign Language Center (NFLC). The University of Maryland’s position as the premier research university in the Washington, D,C, area, with access to government, policy-makers, and industry, plus a melting pot of language diversity, provides enviable opportunities for linking basic science to real-world applications for language.