Welcome!
Willkommen!
Hallo Friends of the German Language and Culture!
Welcome to the GERMAN SCHOOL UPSTATE, SC - a community-driven and parent run non-profit German language school.
The German School Upstate, SC is dedicated to teaching the German language and culture to all ages and backgrounds. Our mission is to ensure that each student develops proficient German language skills, while also learning about the rich cultures and traditions of German-speaking countries. Our curriculum includes teaching cultural perspectives which lead to intercultural competence and enhance an understanding of our global community.
We are affiliated with the following partners:
Central Agency for German Schools Abroad (Zentralstelle für das Auslandsschulwesen)
Goethe Institute (Cultural Institute of the Federal Republic of Germany)
German Federal Foreign Office (Auswärtiges Amt)
American Association of Teachers of German
German Language School Conference
Class Offerings:
Registration for the new school year 2023/24 is open from March 15th 2023. Regular class registration closed on October 1st.
GSU offers in-person, on-campus learning on Thursday at 4:30 PM (Greenville), Wednesday at 6 PM (Columbus, NC), Thursday at 4:30 PM (Spartanburg). We have implemented protocols and practices to prioritize the health and safety of students and faculty.
Register here: https://website.germanschoolupstate.org/registration
Motivation - Why learn German?
Whether it’s landing a great job, traveling to exciting destinations, forging new friendships or learning about cutting edge technology – German is the key! Germany’s central location in Europe and strong economy make it vital in today’s world. The rich history of the German language and culture make it central to understanding the past and shaping the future.
Languages play a role in our national security and economic strength, and in our ability to build mutually beneficial relationships with other cultures. We need multilingual representatives who can interact and negotiate with other countries and cultures, and doing so in other languages often can assure that meaning and intent are not lost in translation.
Well, our students have various reasons for learning German:
"... we are a bi-lingual family of four (I am from Germany, my wife is American, or two children were born here in the US). We speak very little German at home but I want my children to learn my native language ..."
"... I am an American engineer with a German company here in the Upstate. There are many meetings with the head quarter in Germany and the conversations constantly switch between English and German. I would like to be able to follow these conversations ..."
"... I am an High School Student with a talent for Languages but my school doesn't offer German as a foreign language. My goal is it to study Physics in Germany in about two years. I want to learn German to help me join a university there ..."
" ... I am the daughter of a German mother and an American father. Even though I understand alot in a German conversation, I have a hard time speaking it. The grammar is especially difficult for me. I am studying German with the school to improve this ..."
There is is also a clear advantage for being able to understand and speak German here! You may know that the Upstate of South Carolina is home to many US Subsidiaries of German, Austrian and Swiss companies.