My work with international virtual exchange extends beyond Spanish and Portuguese. Between 2014 and 2020, I collaborated with Dr. Natalia Boykova, Assistant Professor of Russian at Virginia Commonwealth University, and Dr. Alla Nazarenko, a renowned linguist, Fulbright Scholar, and Professor of Linguistics at Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU), to develop Russian-English teletandem opportunities for language learners in the United States and Russia.

Together, we explored strategies for facilitating synchronous online interaction between Russian language students at VCU and English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students at MSU. Despite the logistical challenges posed by a seven-hour time difference, we successfully developed a project-based model that promoted authentic communication, intercultural learning, and collaborative language practice.

Our partnership culminated in a site visit to Moscow State University and a joint presentation at the 7th International Scientific and Methodological Conference on Information and Communication Technologies in Linguistics, ELT, and Cross-Cultural Communication. The project later resulted in a scholarly publication: Connecting Cultures, Languages, and Students through Teletandem: Building Bridges to Enhance Learning and Understanding (Nazarenko, Boykova, & Brinckwirth, 2017), published in the Moscow State University Scientific Journal, Series 19: Linguistics and Intercultural Communication.

This collaboration demonstrated how virtual exchange can successfully support less commonly taught languages while fostering meaningful international partnerships, research collaborations, and authentic opportunities for language learning.

My fascination with the Russian language and culture made this project particularly meaningful. Visiting Moscow was a deeply enriching experience, and I found the Russian educators I met to be exceptionally collegial, intellectually curious, and generous collaborators. The experience reinforced my belief that language learning is ultimately about building bridges between people, cultures, and institutions.