Volume 159, Issue 13- April 20, 2026
Commencement
Friday, April 24th, Matherly 18, 10am to noon.
Congratulations on making it to the end of the semester! We hope you learned more English, made some wonderful friends and had some fun this semester. You should all be very proud of yourselves, and we’d like to celebrate your accomplishments at our Commencement Ceremony on Friday. At the ceremony, we will recognize our scholarship and award winners and reflect on this semester at the ELI.
Please invite your family and friends to join us for Commencement and help celebrate. All of your teachers and language assistants and ELI administration will be there too!
Special Announcements
Congratulations are in order!!! We need to congratulate two members of the ELI family this week!
Thomas Dolce
Do you know why we need to say congratulations to Thomas? If you don’t, you should ask him!!! This is also Thomas’s last semester teaching at the ELI this year. If you were lucky enough to have Thomas as your teacher, be sure to thank him and say goodbye before the end of the semester!
You know that Thomas is the Listening/Speaking Coordinator at the ELI. Which of the following are also true?
- He taught English to Korean Olympic Athletes
- He used to be a Language Assistant
- He was an Assistant Coach for the UF Baseball Team
- He taught English classes for 800 high school students in Japan
- He teaches Public Speaking to UF athletes
- He coordinated a program for the US and Saudi Arabian Military
- He taught online English classes for cosmonauts on the International Space Station
Check with Thomas to see if your answers are correct! 😊
Minsang Kim
Congratulations and thank you to Min!!! Min just accepted a position at the UF College of Business! His last day at the ELI will be Friday, May 1st. Min’s first semester in the ELI main office was Spring 2014. Before that, Min was a student at the ELI. So, Min knows everything about the ELI. He has been part of the ELI family for 12 years!!! We are very sad to see him leave, but we are so excited for the opportunities this new position will bring to him. We are also very grateful for all of the time, energy, and expertise Min has dedicated to the ELI. Please be sure to stop by the office to say thank you and goodbye to Min!!!
Min was a student at the ELI in 2013. Who were his teachers? Can you guess?
- Todd Allen
- Patricia Moon
- Jen Ramos
- Christine Voigt
- All of the Above
See the answer at the end of the Weekly!
Last Day of ELI Classes
Thursday, April 23, is the final day of ELI classes this Fall. Teachers will be submitting final grades and attendance reports at the end of the day on Wednesday, April 22. If you are absent on Thursday, your absence will not be counted for immigration, class grades, or any petition you have submitted. All absences on April 20, April 21, and April 22 still count!!! You should not miss class these days!
We hope all ELI students will attend class on Thursday, April 23. Your teachers and LAs have fun and interesting lessons and activities planned. However, we know many ELI students are making preparations to leave Gainesville, so are very busy this last week. If you will not be attending class on Thursday, April 23, please inform your teacher by Tuesday, April 21. Your teachers and LAs need to know how many students to plan for.
Grades and Certificates
Semester certificates will be available immediately after the Commencement Ceremony in the ELI Main Office, and grade reports will be available in myELI by Monday, April 27.
Certificates can be picked up in the ELI Main Office after Commencement Between 12noon and 2:30pm. The office will close at 2:30pm, so be sure to pick up your certificate packet before then.
If you would like a friend or family member to pick up your certificate for you, please stop by the ELI office by Thursday, April 23, to fill out a form so someone else can pick it up for you.
Notes from the Office
Reduced Hours: The ELI will have reduced office hours between April 27th to May 8th. The office will be open from 9am to 3pm, M-F during these dates.
People Out: Christine will be out of the office April 28th and 29th. Please email her if you need help. Daryl will be out from May 6th to May 8th. If you need to contact Daryl, please email him at studyenglish@eli.ufl.edu.
Check your I-20s: If you are traveling during the break (for example, leaving the US and coming back), make sure your I-20 is signed. Also check the expiration date. You can make an appointment with Daryl to sign your I-20 or to renew your I-20 before it expires.
As a reminder, all people in the US on a visa should always have their I-94 with them. The I-94 is proof that you are a registered alien in the US and shows that you are here on a non-immigrant visa. You can access your I-94 at https://i94.cbp.dhs.gov/home. Contact Daryl if you cannot access your I-94.
Also, have access to copies of other important documents, like your I-20, visa, passport, letter from USCIS, or other government issued documents related to your status in the U.S.
Gatorlink: If you are not returning to the ELI in the Summer semester, you will not be able to access your ufl.edu email address, one.uf.edu, Canvas, or other Gatorlink service after May 20th. You will need to download any emails, assignments, or information that you want to keep.
Summer C 2026 Check-in: Returning students, remember, you must check in using myELI between May 4th and May 8th, 2026. Even if you completed the Returning Student Survey, you must check in online to save your space. All students must attend classes beginning on Monday, May 18th.
Summer Semester Dates:
- Summer C classes begin May 18th and end on August 7th.
- Summer break is June 22nd to June 26th.
- Returning students must check-in online between May 4th and May 8th.
- Schedules for returning students will be available on Friday, May 15th and the
- Welcome Picnic is Saturday, May 16th.
- Students with government or university scholarships will need to provide a new financial guarantee by Wednesday, May 20th
Charges Due: Every ELI student should log in to ONE.uf.edu and look at the “Campus Finances (Bursar)” tile to see if you owe any fees to the university. For example, you may need to pay for services you received at the Student Health Care Center or printing in a library. If you have a scholarship, it will not pay these charges. You must also pay any outstanding non-UF charges or fines you may have, like court fees, speeding fines, or parking tickets.
Financial Guarantees for Summer: This is a reminder that students on government, company, or university scholarships need to request a new financial guarantee letter for the Summer semester, if you plan to return. If you need an enrollment letter or if you have any questions, please email us at fiscal@eli.ufl.edu.
Fond Farewells
Goodbye and thank you to two ELI faculty members!
We want to use this last ELI Weekly of the Spring 2026 semester to say goodbye and thank you to two amazing teachers at the ELI:
Lynne Clark
Lynne has been teaching at the ELI for 14 years!!! Lynne was first hired as an adjunct faculty member in 2012 and then was quickly hired as a core-faculty lecturer in 2013. Lynne was promoted to Associate Instructional Professor in 2019. In addition to teaching at the ELI, Lynne has taught thousands of UF Undergraduate Students through her courses in UF’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. She also spends every summer helping incoming UF Freshman prepare for their first year at UF. If you have been one of the fortunate students to have Lynne as an instructor, be sure to say thank you to her before she leaves the ELI!
Olga Moody
Olga has been teaching at the ELI for almost 20 years!!! Olga began teaching at the ELI in 2010. This means she has been teaching at the ELI longer than any of our other instructors, except for Todd and Jen. Olga was promoted to Associate Instructional Professor by UF in 2025. In addition to being an amazing teacher, Olga has also been Editor of the ELI Student Voices publication for 5 years! Did you know that Olga is also an artist? You may have seen her art at the Santa Fe Springs Art Festival. If not, you can see her art and follow her at @olgamoody_myart. Please be sure to say thank you and goodbye to Olga before the end of the semester!
Birthdays
| Students | Staff | ||
| Carla Guedj | April 20 | Patrick Klager | April 23 |
| Haifeng Cao | May 5 | Daryl Bish | April 25 |
| Jen Ramos | May 3 | ||
| Happy Birthday! | |||
Leaving the ELI
If you are leaving the ELI, we hope you will share your experiences with your friends and family. Also, please keep your email updated with us. When the ELI travels internationally for conferences and events, we invite alumni to join us. If you are interested in acting as an ELI Ambassador to assistfuture Gators in your country apply to the ELI, please let Lia Brenneman know (lia@ufl.edu, MAT 220A). If you are interested in becoming an Educational Consultant for the ELI, ask Lia for details. You are the best source of information about the ELI and Gainesville for new students. We appreciate our alumni!
If you want to stay active with English study in your country, please contact our friends at EducationUSA (https://educationusa.state.gov/find-advising-center). They have centers all over the world where they advise students about studying in the USA. It is a great place for you to network, practice English, and help other students learn about your experience studying in Florida.
Answer to Min’s Quiz: Todd Allen and Jen Ramos were two of Min’s teachers when he was a student at the ELI.
From the Editor
Thank you for reading the ELI Weekly this semester!