Phoenix, Arizona - October 15, 2010

Most of the US population takes being a citizen for granted. But, for those who have worked hard to become a US citizen, it can often be more meaningful. Here’s the story of TELL ME MORE employee, Youri Litvine, who earned his US citizenship this week.

Reason for Wanting to Become a US Citizen:
Growing up in the United States after age two, it was natural for Youri Litvine, a Belgian citizen, to identify with being a part of the United States. At age 10 he left the United States and finished high school in Belgium. After high school, Youri returned to the US and graduated from Colorado College and began his master’s degree at Arizona State University.

A Green Card allows foreigners live and work permanently in the US and have the same rights as US citizens, except for voting, having a US Passport and sponsoring family members so they can immigrate to the US. Although Youri had a Green Card that was renewable, the main reason for wanting to gain US citizenship was to be able to vote.

Often US citizens take the freedom to vote for granted. For example, in the last election, the highest percentage of voter turnout since 1964, only 56.8% of the US population voted, according to the US Elections Project. For Youri, the very essence of being an American is implied in having the freedom to vote. In fact, he is so passionate about it that although he gained his citizenship after the voter registration deadline (October 4, 2010), he is writing a letter to the county commissioner to see if she will make an exception so that he will be able to vote in the upcoming election (November 2nd, 2010).

Process to US Citizenship

After turning in the 9-page US Citizenship Application Form along with $675 dollars in April 2010, Youri received a letter in June with the date for his interview on July 23rd. One piece of advice that Youri recommends to others is to save all of your travel records five years prior to applying as this portion of the application took the longest time.

The big date finally arrived! After years of living in the US, Youri was both excited and nervous before the test. At the interview, 10 questions are asked regarding US history and government, of which six needed to be answered correctly in order to pass. Youri was happy to learn that the questions he’d studied were the exact questions asked by the interviewer! -Sample questions on the test included:

1.) How many US representatives are there?

2.) What does freedom of religion mean?

3.) When was the US Constitution written?

During the interview Youri had to demonstrate his ability to speak English proficiently. In order to determine this, questions are asked regarding the application and candidate’s background. In addition, Youri had to write the following sentence correctly when given verbally, “The capitol of the United States is Washington, D.C.” After correctly answering the questions and verbally agreeing that he is willing to bear arms for the United States as well as uphold the laws of the land, Youri received the red stamp of approval, signifying that he was going to be a citizen of the United States.

About TELL ME MORE®, powered by Auralog

Auralog is a world leader in language learning solutions and publisher of the award-winning TELL ME MORE® solution suite. Auralog incorporates over 20 years of language empowerment experience, full training support services and advanced technologies including speech recognition, video, role play and spoken language tracking into the TELL ME MORE® suite of language learning software programs. With offices in United-States, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Mexico, and China, Auralog has more than 350 employees and provides services globally to more than 10,000 organizations and over 7 million learners. Users of TELL ME MORE® include primary, secondary, higher and adult education institutions, home school, libraries, individual consumers, and businesses of all sizes. www.tellmemore.com.

Last Friday he received a letter in the mail stating that his naturalization (citizenship) ceremony will be today at 9:00 AM. His parents are flying in from Belgium to attend!

Joining TELL ME MORE

Youri was immediately intrigued when he saw the advertisement on Career-Builder for TELL ME MORE, “Are you a French Teacher Seeking New Adventures?” As a French teacher for Scottsdale Unified School district for several years, he had recently selected to use TELL ME MORE in the foreign language departments throughout the district. Prior to purchasing TELL ME MORE for the district, both Rosetta Stone and TELL ME MORE presented to the district. During the presentation, Youri was particularly impressed with TELL ME MORE’s Speech Recognition Technology. Today, Youri is a Trainer and Implementation Specialist who travels throughout the United States to help clients install TELL ME MORE in schools, libraries or businesses.

About TELL ME MORE®, powered by Auralog

Auralog is a world leader in language learning solutions and publisher of the award-winning TELL ME MORE® solution suite. Auralog incorporates over 20 years of language empowerment experience, full training support services and advanced technologies including speech recognition, video, role play and spoken language tracking into the TELL ME MORE® suite of language learning software programs. With offices in United-States, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Mexico, and China, Auralog has more than 350 employees and provides services globally to more than 10,000 organizations and over 7 million learners. Users of TELL ME MORE® include primary, secondary, higher and adult education institutions, home school, libraries, individual consumers, and businesses of all sizes. www.tellmemore.com.