Originally called Centre for Research on Language Contact, the CRLC was first chartered by York University’s Senate Committee on Research in 2005. Proposed by professors Ian Martin, Daniel Simeoni, Dorin Uritescu and Raymond Mougeon, the Centre was created as the first organized research unit (ORU) based at Glendon College, with the goal of fostering a vibrant and ongoing programme of collaborative research aimed at:

  • cultivating the independent threads of language research university-wide to promote collaborative, multidisciplinary research under the umbrella of language contact
  • furthering Glendon’s mission of bilingualism
  • creating opportunities for graduate students to participate in language research and Centre activities
  • being the sole centre for research on language contact in Canada
  • advancing research in the University themes of culture and entertainment, and international studies.

The CRLC was rechartered in 2014. As part of the rechartering exercise the centre’s name was changed to Centre for Research on Language and Culture Contact (CRLCC), in order to better reflect the rich and interdisciplinary nature of its membership and its research initiatives.


The Centre has had the following directors:
  • Raymond Mougeon (2006-2010)
  • Dominique Scheffel-Dunand  (2010-2015)
  • María Constanza Guzmán (2015-2017)
  • Dominique Scheffel-Dunand  (2017-2018)
  • Elaine Coburn  (2018-2019)
  • Sylvie Rosienski-Pellerin  (2019-present)