Genevieve Acker moved to France in 1962 to complete a master’s program. She married a Frenchman the next year and went on to build a long career with the Fulbright office in Paris, where she served as deputy director until her retirement in 1997.
In 1978 she received a phone call inviting her to get involved in the Women’s Task Force, which would later become WICE (Women’s Institute for Continuing Education).
She continues to volunteer with Agile France, managing missions to teach French and other skills in Eastern Europe and Armenia.
Tell us a bit about yourself and your background.
I was born and raised in Newport, Rhode Island, and I got a BA in French literature at Barnard College in New York. Then I came to France to do a master’s with the Middlebury programme.
I had already met my future husband when I was a senior at Barnard. He had had a Fulbright scholarship to Princeton, and he was waiting for me when I arrived.
Did you find it a difficult adjustment?
No, I was lucky because I spoke French fluently already. I majored in French in college.
My parents, who were American, met in Paris. My father was studying medicine, and my mother was studying French literature at the Sorbonne. They fell madly in love and got married.
We were programmed to love France. We were told that France was the only place where there was the art of living and civilisation.
How did you get involved with WICE?
Sandra Lanto, one of the founding members, called me up and said, “We think you’d be a good addition to the Women’s Task Force”—which is what it was called then. She was very persuasive, so I joined. I found the other women very dynamic and interesting, and we hammered out what we wanted WICE to be.
What were you trying to build?
First of all, a place where English-speaking women could get together, meet each other, and exchange ideas. Secondly, get some intellectual stimulation through lectures on topics of current interest. And third, some kind of professional qualification.
Paris in those days was far less international than it is now, and there weren’t many places for English-speaking women to find that kind of community.
Acker remained with WICE for the next ten years, eventually stepping back due to work and daily commitments. One notable achievement during that period was the development of a TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) certification with the American University of Paris, which members could use to find jobs teaching English in France and abroad.
What surprises you most about how WICE has evolved?
What I find very positive is that it’s international, and not just native English speakers. It welcomes people from all over who are fluent in English but who bring new points of view.
I like the idea that it’s “Where Internationals Connect in English”. Not just Americans or British people, it’s anyone who speaks English and brings something different. That matters enormously.
What would you say to the women who showed up to that very first meeting?
That I am proud.
Learn more about the history of WICE on our About page.
By Kristen Lawson
