As an undergraduate studying abroad in a sleepy Loire village, Kathy’s intermediate French class not only bolstered my understanding of verb tenses, idioms, and other tricky parts of the language, it also prepared me with the practical, everyday French I needed to navigate supermarkets, converse with locals at the pub, book taxis and accommodations over the phone, and much more. Out of the many French teachers I had in my college career, Kathy was by far my favorite, and her class gave me the knowledge and confidence to travel in France on my first trip abroad.