Modern Technology, Artificial Intelligence, and Cybersecurity
June 23 to July 12, 2025
Who can apply: Students entering their first year in college through the senior year, both second language learners and heritage speakers
Cost: The Pitt Russian STARTALK program is free of charge to accepted students (including instructions, instructional materrials, meal and board, and excursions).
The Pitt STARTALK Russian Program will be administered by the University of Pittsburgh’s Center for Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies (REEES), offering an intensive three-week residential Russian language summer camp from June 23 to July 12, 2025. The curriculum will be based on the theme “Modern Technology, Artificial Intelligence, and Cybersecurity” through which students will be introduced to various topics related to computer studies, computer-assisted language learning, Internet culture, cybersecurity, machine learning, etc. in the target language (Russian). The language curriculum will be performance-based, content-based, and student-centered, developing language skills in all modes required for successful communication—speaking, listening, reading, and writing, with a goal of ACTFL Intermediate High proficiency for students in Group 1 and Advance Low to Advance Mid for students in Group 2. Other anticipated outcomes include the students’ increased cultural competence and professional career readiness in a number of fields such as cybersecurity, data analysis, computational linguistics, digital humanities, and many more. The program is for 20 students entering first year in college through the senior year, both second language learners and heritage speakers, providing a total of 120 instructional hours. Besides working closely with the School of Computing and Information at Pitt and their students, REEES will partner up with other universities which have strong focus on technology, computer sciences, and cybersecurity and offer Russian language classes and/or Russian Major/Minor to recruit participants, while also accepting applications from students at other U.S. colleges.
You can expect your schedule to look similar to the following sample:
| DAY | Morning Classes 9am-12pm | Lunch Together 12-1pm | Afternoon Classes 1-3pm | Individual Consultations 3-4pm | Evening Activity 6-8:30pm |
| Monday |
Break and snack, 10:30-10:45am | Informal conversation time | 1-2pm: Practicum with AI-generators 2-3pm: Technology lecture series | Office hour Instructor or TA | Career hour/alumni meet-up |
| Tuesday |
Break and snack, 10:30-10:45am | Informal conversation time | 1-2pm: Technology lecture series 2-3pm: Culture lecture series | Office hour Instructor or TA | 6:30-7:30pm: Virtual technology lecture 7:30-8:30pm: Computer-assisted game design practicum |
| Wednesday |
Break and snack, 10:30-10:45am | Informal conversation time | 1-2pm: Intro to Russian Internet Culture 2-3pm: Technology lecture series | Office hour Instructor or TA | A culture night |
| Thursday |
Break and snack, 10:30-10:45am | Informal conversation time | 1-3pm: Field trips | Office hour Instructor or TA | A final project preparation |
| Friday |
Break and snack, 10:30-10:45am | Informal conversation time | 1-2pm: A Virtual Reality/Augmented Reality class in Open Lab 2-3pm: Technology lecture series | Office hour Instructor or TA | A movie night |
| Saturday | Brunch Dinner | Field trips to the Russian store, the Russian restaurant, or the Russian Orthodox church for cultural immersion. | |||
| Sunday | Brunch Dinner | Free time | |||
Olga Klimova, Program Director
Dr. Olga Klimova currently works as an Associate Teaching Professor and Director of the Russian Program at the University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She has earned her M.A. and Ph.D. in Russian Literature, Language, and Culture from Pitt, an M.A. in Popular Culture from Brock University, Canada, and an MS.Ed in Instructional Technology from Duquesne University. She has been teaching Russian language, literature, and culture courses in Pitt's Slavic Department since 2005. She has also taught a variety of language, literature, and culture courses at Carnegie Mellon University, Brock University, Mercyhurst University, Chatham University, and Washington and Jefferson College. Dr. Klimova is a certified ACTFL OPI tester and WPT tester and also a regional chair for the ACTR Olympiada of Spoken Russian. She has received extensive training in second language teaching methodologies, educational technologies, and online teaching at Pitt, Duquesne University, CARLA Institute at the University of Minnesota, and the University of Hawaii, and participated in a few STARTALK teacher training summer programs.
Among her interests are language curriculum development, instructional technology integration, community-based language learning, visual and popular culture of the late-Soviet and post-Soviet periods, cultural representations of Chornobyl, post-Soviet protest culture and art, and Eastern European and Central Asian cinemas.
Dasha Prokhorova, Teaching/Resident Assistant
Dasha is a Ph.D. Student in the Slavic Department, University of Pittsburgh. She received a B.A. in Anthropology and Russian Language and Literature from the University of Virginia and an M.A. from New York University in Media, Culture and Communication. She has been teaching Russian language and culture classes in the Slavic Department since 2023. She also has experience teaching English to non-native speakers in the US and Czech Republic.
Instructor (Group 1), TBA
Instructor (Group 2), TBA
To apply, please complete and submit this application form and ask two of your academic mentors, who are familiar with your language learning abilities, to submit two letters of recommendation at the link below.
Two letters of recommendations from two academic mentors (professor, academic advisor, language instructor, etc.), who can reflect on your academic achievements and aspirations, your experience with language learning in general (does not have to be related to Russian studies), and vouch for your academic and personal character, should be submitted here.
For any questions and inquiries about Pitt STARTALK Russian Summer Program, contact russian.startalk@pitt.edu (Olga Klimova), crees@pitt.edu, or (412) 648-7407.
Our mailing address is:
Center for Russian, East European & Eurasian Studies
University of Pittsburgh
4200 Wesley W. Posvar Hall
Pittsburgh, PA 15260