Since becoming the first graduate of Michigan State University’s Second Language Studies (SLS) Ph.D. program in 2009, Amy S. Thompson has built an extraordinary career as a researcher, educator, and leader in applied linguistics.

Most recently, she was honored with the Association of Language Departments Award for Distinguished Service to the Profession presented by the Modern Language Association (MLA). The award recognizes Thompson’s national leadership in language advocacy, particularly in response to West Virginia University’s (WVU) 2023 decision to eliminate all language programs.

Thompson joined WVU in 2018 as the Woodburn Professor of Applied Linguistics and Chair of the Department of World Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics. She took on prominent leadership roles, including the directorship of international initiatives and strategic planning for the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences. She helped revive the university’s Intensive English program by creating the English Language Learning Institute, thereby streamlining operations and introducing innovative programming, bringing the program from a deficit of a few hundred thousand dollars to financial stability within a year.

Then in 2023, WVU found itself at the epicenter of a national debate about the future of humanities and language education when the university announced its plans to eliminate all language programs. The decision was part of a larger “academic transformation” to address a purported $45 million budget deficit.

Leading Advocate for Language Education

WVU’s proposal, which included dissolving Thompson’s department and eliminating all language instruction, threatened the careers of faculty and graduate students and the educational opportunities of undergraduate students.

During this time, Thompson emerged as a leader and advocate, drawing on her years of experience as a department chair, researcher, and mentor.

“Through this process, I had to figure out how to lead and support this group of individuals in the department and in the different programs while simultaneously advocating for those specific disciplines,” Thompson said. “I thought primarily about the negative effects for students if they suddenly lost access to language or culture courses for world languages at the flagship university in the only state that’s 100% in Appalachia. Many of these students may not have had much opportunity to interact with languages and cultures other than English outside of the institution.”

“We had letters from STEM faculty across the world saying that the most competitive scientists around the world are bilingual or multilingual.”

Thompson mobilized faculty, students, alums, and external stakeholders, spearheading an advocacy campaign that included gathering testimonials from students and faculty and quantitative data on how WVU’s decision would affect enrollment, revenue, and student success. In just 48 hours, she conducted a survey that received hundreds of responses from students, detailing how language programs had impacted their academic and career goals.

She also engaged with national and international experts in language education, securing letters of support from academics in STEM fields and the humanities. These letters underscored the importance of bilingualism and multilingualism for competitiveness in a global workforce, debunking any notion that language education was irrelevant to fields like science, technology, and engineering.

“We had letters from STEM faculty across the world saying that the most competitive scientists around the world are bilingual or multilingual,” Thompson said.

Using the survey results, Thompson created detailed revenue projections showing the potential loss of tuition dollars from students who said they would not attend WVU if language and culture courses were eliminated. She transformed this data into tables, graphs, and reports that demonstrated not only the academic importance of the programs but also their financial value to the institution.

“I knew we couldn’t argue why languages were important. We were already past that point,” Thompson said. “I went in hard on maintaining some language instruction, and that was the point I drove home with the data I collected and the story I told. We had to show, in concrete terms, the costs of cutting these programs and the value they brought to the university.”

Thompson also facilitated the creation of an online petition that garnered more than 25,000 signatures in less than 10 days and coordinated with national media outlets, including The Chronicle of Higher Education and Inside Higher Ed, to bring public attention to the issue.

Even as the situation became increasingly contentious — with student protests and walkouts —Thompson maintained her composure. She served as a mediator between the administration, faculty, and students and focused on keeping the advocacy effort professional and grounded in evidence.

“That was very important to maintain decorum through the process,” Thompson said. “I knew that emotions wouldn’t work. When I went home, I was emotionally and physically exhausted, but my outward-facing self stayed calm throughout.”

“I prioritized saving what we could by preserving some language instruction and faculty positions. I am glad that students will have some opportunities to study language at WVU.”

While WVU ultimately eliminated its language majors, Thompson’s advocacy succeeded in preserving instruction in four languages and several faculty members retained their positions.

“I had to focus on attainable goals. If I had gone in and said everything needs to stay, I wouldn’t have been taken seriously,” Thompson said. “I prioritized saving what we could by preserving some language instruction and faculty positions. I am glad that students will have some opportunities to study language at WVU. However, the opportunities have been greatly diminished and that breaks my heart, and I worry about that. But, nonetheless, it is better than having no language instruction.”

For her extraordinary efforts, Thompson was presented with the 2024 Association of Language Departments Award for Distinguished Service to the Profession at the MLA Annual Convention’s awards ceremony in January 2025. The award recognizes her advocacy for language and culture instruction and the strategic and composed manner in which she led her department and the broader language education community through this time.

Second Language Studies Education and Career 

In addition to her language education advocacy and leadership, Thompson also has positioned herself, throughout her career, as a leading scholar in Second Language Studies. It was at Michigan State University where Thompson first decided to focus on Second Language Studies. While working on her master’s degree in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages from MSU several faculty members had talked to her about the new Second Language Studies Ph.D. program at MSU.

“When I started learning what the SLS program meant, what it was, and what the field of applied linguistics meant overall, I realized this was the perfect combination of the technical side of language that I really love, but also the interpersonal and intercultural and the practical side of language that I really love,” Thompson said. “It was the perfect merger of what I wanted to do for the rest of my life.”

Thompson earned her M.A. in TESOL in 2005 and went on to become the first graduate of MSU’s SLS Ph.D. program in 2009.

“The SLS program at Michigan State, and Michigan State more broadly, informed my faculty philosophy, research philosophy, but also leadership philosophy,” Thompson said. “Coming from a strong program like the SLS program at MSU gave me the opportunity to start strong. I feel that MSU, in a way, made it possible for me to be the person and the scholar that I am today. I feel very fortunate to have gone through the SLS program and to be an alumna of Michigan State.”

“I feel that MSU, in a way, made it possible for me to be the person and the scholar that I am today. I feel very fortunate to have gone through the SLS program and to be an alumna of Michigan State.”

After earning her Ph.D., Thompson secured a tenure-track position at the University of South Florida (USF) where she directed the TESOL master’s program, advised Ph.D. students who would go on to secure prestigious positions worldwide, and built a reputation as an accomplished scholar and mentor. She left USF in 2018 to begin her position as the Woodburn Professor of Applied Linguistics and Chair of the Department of World Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics at West Virginia University.

In Fall 2024, Thompson moved back to Florida where she now continues her commitment of supporting students, faculty, and language programs as the Mack and Effie Campbell Distinguished Professor and Director of the School of Teacher Education in the Anne Spencer Daves College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences at Florida State University.

Research in Multiple Language Learning

In her research, Thompson focuses on how multiple language learning experiences interact and examines how cognitive and affective factors — such as motivation, identity, and tolerance for ambiguity — affect multilingual learning. Her research has shown that individuals with multiple language-learning experiences often learn additional languages more successfully.

“If people have positive perceptions about how multiple language learning experiences interact, does it help support them and make them more successful in subsequent language learning experiences? The data that I’ve looked at and written about over the years, in summary, says yes,” Thompson said. “When you have multiple language learning experiences, this seems to help in subsequent language acquisition.”

Thompson’s work also explores how students respond to challenging learning environments. She is particularly interested in individuals who thrive despite difficult circumstances or those who push back against expectations to succeed in unexpected ways.

“Those sparks of motivation that arise in response to adversity or skepticism — when someone says, ‘Oh, you can’t possibly learn Mandarin, you should quit and do something else,’ and the student responds, ‘Well, I’ll show you,’ and then becomes a great Mandarin language learner’ —are fascinating to me,” Thompson said. “That kind of resilience and drive is central to many successful language-learning stories.”

“If people have positive perceptions about how multiple language learning experiences interact, does it help support them and make them more successful in subsequent language learning experiences? The data that I’ve looked at and written about over the years, in summary, says yes.”

Another key area of her research is the concept of tolerance for ambiguity — how individuals navigate novel or ambiguous situations. Thompson has found that multilingual learners often excel in ambiguous or novel situations because their experiences learning a second language teach them to cope with uncertainty.

“To feel comfortable in situations where you may not necessarily know what’s going on, but you can still excel, that skill is something that multilingual learners tend to have a little bit more of because they’ve had lots of experiences like that,” Thompson said. “And when you’re put in a variety of different types of ambiguous situations, you do learn how to cope successfully with those.”

Supporting the Next Generation of Scholars

In addition to her research, Thompson is equally devoted to mentoring the next generation of scholars. She has advised dozens of master’s and Ph.D. students throughout her career, many of whom have gone on to secure faculty positions and publish influential research.

Thompson’s commitment to mentorship extends beyond her students. When she first received tenure at USF, she began mentoring faculty, offering guidance on research, teaching, and professional development, working one-on-one with faculty members to help them meet their professional goals. As her leadership roles expanded, she has shifted her focus toward mentoring other faculty leaders, ensuring they can effectively support their colleagues and students.

“It’s like a ripple effect,” she said. “By helping one person succeed, you’re creating a layering effect that impacts their students, their colleagues, and their institutions. I know that I’ve helped a lot of faculty, staff, and students become better scholars. I feel right now that calling, if you will, to work in situations where I have leadership positions, where I can set up infrastructures to help others succeed.”

Today at FSU, Thompson remains active in professional organizations, serves on editorial boards, and mentors faculty and students. She also sees herself as a resource for others navigating complex institutional changes, particularly in the current climate of higher education.

“We need strong academic leaders right now. To be in a leadership role at any institution around the country, at this moment, is important,” Thompson said. “I had lots of practice last year interacting with media, going between faculty and the provost or president, thinking about how governmental policy affects the day-to-day activities of whatever unit it is I’m leading. I learned how to lead in difficult times, and I think that is a skill that I will use throughout the rest of my leadership career.”

By Austin Curtis and Kim Popiolek