About Us
The German Culture Center is part of the Center for International Studies at UMSL and is a cooperating partner with Goethe Institut. 
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The German Culture Center is located on the campus of the University of Missouri-St. Louis and is a unit of the Center for International Studies. The GCC is also a "cultural institute" of GOETHE INSTITUT. Since its founding in 1999, the GCC has become a key institution for area German teachers, for the German American community, and for those in the general public who wish to know more about German life, language and culture. Students from the University of Missouri-St. Louis also make great use of the Center’s resources, borrowing materials and attending classes at the Center. Mr, Marsh, Coordinator of the GCC, began his interest in German language and culture as an exchange student to Goettingen, Germany. He later was a Fulbright teacher in Heidelberg. Before joining the GCC in 2000, he was a high school history and humanities teacher. Mr. Marsh was recently presented a Lifetime Achievement Award for his work as a director and designer of over 80 theatrical productions and as the conductor of Northwinds Concert Band. Mr. Marsh is also a liaison for UM-St. Louis's
Advanced Credit program. In this capacity he works directly with
teachers and administrators at many local public and parochial schools. |
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GCC ASSISTANTS Each year, the German Culture Center employs native speaking students to assist in the Center's activities.
Nadine Henseler comes from the University of Stuttgart. She is majoring in English and is studying during the fall semester at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. She works at the GCC on Tuesdays from 2 to 5 pm. Nadine is originally from Ulm.
Philipp Grünhage works as student assistant for the GCC. He studies Political Science, History and Economics at Bonn University. He is at UMSL for the fall semester and works on Wednesdays in the afternoon.
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Programs
The Center continues to work closely with the Goethe Institut in
Chicago. Thousands have attended GCC workshops and programs, which
often feature German artists and scholars.
The GCC is an active member of the German American
Committee of Saint Louis. This umbrella organization of over
twenty cultural societies helps coordinate area events and plans the
annual German-American Day celebration held in October.
The Center is open to the general public three days
a week. Each year more than 500 visitors come to the GCC to check
out videos from the ever-expanding collection. These videos may
be borrowed, free of charge, for two weeks.
German teachers make extensive use of the Center,
which has become a sort of ombudsman for German educational affairs,
helping promote school events, publicizing course offerings of the
University and other institutions, and announcing job openings or
special requests from local school districts.
Each year, the GCC
offers well-attended workshops for German teachers and works closely
with the Missouri Association of Teachers of German in providing
programs to improve and promote the teaching of German in area schools.
The Center also presents the Goessl Book Award to outstanding students
of German. This year, twelve students received the prize, named
for the late UM-St. Louis Professor, Alfred Goessl.
