In 2020 two MAFLT colleagues and I conducted a research report on the world language program of a high school in Virginia. We collected a variety of qualitative data including basic details about school size, resources, teacher and student demographics etc; official materials related to the school's vision and mission statement and the World Language department's teaching philosophy and academic standards; interviews with a teacher and department head; and samples of classroom curricula and assessments.

Using this data, we provide an overview of the school's professional structure, highlighting some of inherent tradeoffs and implications for the World Language department in particular. We note some of the program's strengths and share some possible areas for improvement related to departmental identity, horizontal and vertical alignment, and teacher development.