Administrative Staff

Director Council 

Christine Schulze has been the executive director of Concordia Language Villages since 1989. In 2006, she was appointed vice president for international development at Concordia College, Moorhead, Minn. She has been on staff for 33 years and was a Spanish villager for one year. She served as dean of Lac du Bois, the French Language Village, and directed French Village Weekend programs for six years in the ‘80s. Christine was the first leader of French Voyageurs and co-led an abroad program to Switzerland. She is fluent in French and has studied German and Spanish.

Christine graduated from Concordia College, Moorhead, Minn., with majors in French, history-political science and a minor in German with a secondary education certification. She studied in Rennes, France, and taught French at Concordia College for one year. She attended an international law study program in Lyon, France, and earned a juris doctorate from the University of Minnesota Law School. She was admitted to the State Bar of Minnesota.

Donna Danièle Clementi is the Concordia Language Villages director of education and research and dean of the Teacher Seminars program. Danièle earned her bachelor’s degree in French from St. Olaf College, Northfield, Minn., and her master’s degree in curriculum development from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

She has received numerous awards in honor of her contributions to the field of language education. These awards include the Supervisor of the Year Award from the National Association of District Supervisors of Foreign Languages; The WAFLT Distinguished Foreign Language Educator Award; ACTFL’s Florence Steiner Award for K-12 Leadership in Foreign Languages; a Certificate of Contributions to the Promotion of the Study of French in Wisconsin; and the Mielke Outstanding Educator Award. She has also received the Kings Daughters Outstanding Educator Award, and she has been a Rockefeller Fellow.

Danièle serves as past-chair of the board for the Central States Conference on the Teaching of Foreign Languages.

Martin Graefe is the director for year-round programs (programs that emphasize language learning as a lifelong endeavor). He has been on staff at Concordia Language Villages for 20 years, including 10 years as
the associate director for operations.

He is a native of Germany and has studied French. Martin received his bachelor’s degree from the University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, N.D., and a master’s degree in business administration from the Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota. Since joining the Villages, he has been involved with Rotary International and the American Camp Association, occasionally presenting at its national conference.

Carl-Martin Nelson, a former dean of Waldsee, the German Language Village, is director of international exchange programs. Carl-Martin has been on staff at Concordia Language Villages for 19 years. He is fluent in German and has studied Norwegian.

Carl-Martin graduated from St. Olaf College, Northfield, Minn., with a bachelor’s degree in English with a concentration in German. He earned his master’s degree in writing from Northeastern University.

Patricia Murasaki Thornton is the director for summer youth programs. She has been on staff for 11 years in the role of two-week facilitator, curriculum developer and dean of the Japanese Language Village. She has extensive professional experience in language and culture education as a teacher, administrator and staff developer.

Patricia has served as a director on the National Council of Japanese Language Teachers and on the executive board of the Association of Teachers of Japanese. She has worked with the College Board on National Board Assessments for Japanese Language Teachers and on the development of the Japanese AP exam. Patricia has delivered workshops both nationally and internationally. She holds a B.A. degree from the University of Minnesota with a double major in Japanese and East Asian History, an M.A. from the University of St. Thomas in teaching, and a current Minnesota K-12 teaching license.

Deans

Our deans are professional educators with long-term commitments to language immersion and Concordia Language Villages; many started as villagers themselves. Click a link below to learn more about the deans, their expertise and background.

Arabic | Chinese | Danish | English | Finnish | French Lac du Bois | French Voyageur
German | Italian | Japanese | Korean | Norwegian | Russian | Spanish | Swedish