The LRC hosts conversation hours in many languages, some in collaboration with the language departments. These are led by speakers of the target language and offer an opportunity to use a language you are learning, outside of class, in an informal, low-pressure atmosphere. They are open to any learner, but are probably most useful to those at an intermediate level or above. Gain confidence through experience! Just using your new language skills helps you learn more than you might think, without instruction or correction. Come to Conversation Hour in your language and have fun! If you are learning a language we don't have a conversation hour in, find a group of learners and we'll help set it up. See us in G04 Stimson Hall during the day or send us an email at cornelllrc@cornell.edu to get started. Conversation Hours are open to the public.
If you are interested in facilitating a Conversation Hour, please complete our facilitator form and we will get back to you.
We also have a variety of board games available for checkout (for a complete list of games, check our LRC library holdings)!
Fall 2026 Schedule
Conversation Hours start on Monday, August 31 and run through Monday, December 7, unless noted otherwise. There are no sessions during university holidays, Fall Break (October 10-13), and Thanksgiving Break (November 25-29). We are in the process of scheduling additional hours. Please check back for more details and follow us on social media (@CornellLRC).
Conversation Hours meet in G25 Stimson Hall unless noted otherwise.
All times are ET.
| Language | Date, Time, & Location | Facilitator |
|---|---|---|
| American Sign Language | Wednesdays, 4:30-5:30 pm starts 9/9 | Lisa Sunde |
| Arabic | Wednesdays, 10 am - 1:30 pm | Jaydaa Alkasseer |
| Armenian | Thursdays, 5-6 pm | Varvara Barseghyan |
| Bangla/Bengali | Thursdays, 4:30-5:30 pm | Durjoy Bhadra |
| Cantonese | Tuesdays, 4:30-5:30 pm starts 9/8, no sessions 9/22, 9/29, 11/3, 11/17, 11/24 | Toby Yung |
| Catalan | Thursdays, 5-6 pm | Clara Alcolea Vila |
| English° | Tuesdays, 4:30-5:30 pm | Cody Paul |
| English° | Thursdays, 9-10 am (Temple of Zeus) meets 9/3, 9/17, 10/1, 10/15, 10/29, 11/12, 12/3 | Christina Hermiz |
| English° | Thursdays, 1-2 pm (Plant Science Bldg 328A) starts 9/24 | Bill Fry |
| English° | Thursdays, 4-5 pm (Plant Science Bldg 328A) starts 9/24 | Bill Fry |
| English° | Thursdays, 4:30-5:30 pm | Chiara Giraldo |
| English° | Fridays, 12-1 pm (on Zoom) | Amanda Olego |
| English° | Fridays, 2-3 pm meets 9/4, 10/2, 11/6, 12/4 | Amanda Olego |
| French | Mondays, 5-6 pm | Jérémy Girardeau-Montaut |
| German (Sprachcafé*) | Mondays, 5-6 pm (Big Red Barn) | Benjamin Beese, Adam Rahl, & Marvin Brink |
| Greek (ancient) | TBD | Charlie Preston |
| Greek (modern) | Thursdays, 12-1 pm | Katerina Dimitriadou-Shuster |
| Indonesian | Fridays, 12-2 pm | Haidir Algi Gaffar Faridha |
| Japanese | Wednesdays, 3:45-4:45 pm | Cody Paul |
| Japanese | Fridays, 11 am - 12 pm | Yusuke Fukase |
| Korean | Wednesdays, 4-5 pm | Doyeon Kong |
| Korean | Wednesdays, 5-6 pm | Su-Yeon Seo |
| Latin | TBD | Charlie Preston |
| Mandarin | Fridays, 2:30-3:30 pm | Lydia Huang |
| Norwegian | Tuesdays, 5:30-6:30 pm (Big Red Barn) | Sarah Uttormark |
| Romanian | TBD | Patricia Young |
| Russian | Mondays, 6:30-7:30 pm | Karann Putrevu |
| Sanskrit | Fridays, 12-1 pm | Ahmed Shamim |
| Spanish | Tuesdays, 5:30-6:30 pm | Cody Paul |
| Spanish | Thursday, 10:30-11:30 am meets on 9/3 | Javier Rosell |
| Spanish | Saturdays, 1-2 pm (Johnson Museum lobby) | Esmeralda Alverde Duarte |
| Thai | Wednesdays, 7-8 pm (on Zoom) | June Boonyanuphong |
| Turkish (beginner) | Tuesdays, 5:30-6:30 pm (G24B) | Pelin Kumbet |
| Turkish (intermediate) | Tuesdays and Thursdays, 4:30-5:30 pm (G24B) | Pelin Kumbet |
| Yiddish | Fridays, 12-1 pm (on Zoom) | David Forman |