The Interagency Language Roundtable (ILR) is an unfunded federal organization that brings together government employees to discuss foreign languages. It meets monthly to share information and address issues. The ILR's mission is to coordinate and share foreign language activities across federal agencies. Membership provides opportunities for communication, dissemination of language information, and sharing of ideas across government agencies. The ILR consists of individuals interested in foreign language use who meet monthly, with four committees meeting before each plenary session. It was established in 1955 by representatives from the Air Force, Foreign Service Institute, and CIA to improve coordination on language training and testing among federal agencies.

1. ILR

2. What is the ILR?
 The Interagency Language Roundtable (ILR) is an unfunded federal
organization. It is where government employees interested in foreign
languages can come together with counterparts inside and outside
government to discuss and share information and address concerns.
The ILR meets monthly from September to June each year, and its
members also communicate with each other through the ILR email list

3. What is the mission of the ILR?
 The Interagency Language Roundtable is an unfunded Federal interagency
organization established for the coordination and sharing of information about
foreign language-related activities at the Federal level. It serves as the premier
way for departments and agencies of the Federal government to keep abreast of
the progress and implementation of techniques and technology for language
learning, language use, language testing and other language-related activities.
 Participation in the ILR provides organizations and individuals with:(1) an assured
channel of communication and cooperation among agencies that have common
interests in foreign language use, training and testing; (2) a centralized forum for
the dissemination of language-related information across the government; and (3)
a working network for the mutual sharing of ideas, information and materials
among organizations in government, the academic community, and the private
sector.

4. What does the ILR consist of?
 The ILR consists of a broad membership of individuals with professional
interests in foreign language use in work-related contexts, including the
teaching, learning and testing of effective language ability and proficiency.
Approximately 60% of the members are federal government employees, and
all members of the ILR Steering Committee are federal employees.
 Members of the ILR meet in plenary sessions on a monthly basis between
September and June, where lectures or demonstrations on topics of general
interest are presented. Immediately before each plenary, four ILR committees
meet to discuss particular areas of interest. These are the Training
Committee, the Testing Committee, the Translation and Interpretation
Committee, and the Culture Committee.

5. Is the ILR a government agency?
 No. The ILR has no formal status in the government. It has no operating
budget and relies solely on a volunteer membership and the collaborative
spirit of the participating organizations to provide their employees with the
opportunity to participate in ILR meetings.

6. Who can be a member of the ILR?
 Any individual (whether a USG employee or not) with a serious interest in
language use, language learning, or language testing may attend the ILR
plenary meetings and may join the ILR-INFO email list. Most of the meetings
of the Training, Testing, Translation and Interpretation, and Culture
Committees are also open to anyone, as space permits. Some meetings of the
Testing and Training committees are open only to government
representatives, especially when issues are discussed that may affect
contracting by one or more agency. When this occurs, it is announced in
advance. Meetings of the ILR Steering Committee are open only to federal
government representatives.

7. What are the “ILR Language Skill-Level
Descriptions”?
 What are the “ILR Language Skill-Level Descriptions”?
Sometimes referred to as the “ILR Guidelines,” these are descriptions of
different levels of proficiency for four different language “skills”—Speaking,
Reading , Listening and Writing. The scale used to describe each skill has six
Base Levels, ranging from 0 “No functional proficiency” to 5 “Functionally
equivalent to a highly educated native speaker/reader/etc.” These guidelines
are accepted by all agencies of the federal government. They are used as a
primary reference in the different government tests of language ability. Level
2 is defined as “Limited Working Proficiency.” Many USG agencies require a
minimum of Level 3, “General Professional Proficiency.”

8. Who established the ILR?
 Who established the ILR?
The underlying rationale for the ILR arose through discussions in 1955 among
James R. Frith, then with the Air Force Language Program, Howard
Sollenberger of the Foreign Service Institute, and Clyde Sargent of the CIA
Training Division, who recognized a need for better coordination and
communication in language training and testing among federal agencies.