About Us
The English-Speaking Union of the United States
Mission
The ESU celebrates English as a shared language to foster global understanding and good will by providing educational and cultural opportunities for students, educators, and members.
Vision
The ESU, a non-profit, non-political organization:
- Advances global understanding by providing educational opportunities through programs and scholarship for students, educators, and members;
- Promotes communication and open exchange of ideas among the world's speakers of English;
- Enriches communities through active involvement of its branch members in outreach programs;
- Offers financial assistance to students and educators to further academic pursuits in English-related studies, and
- Develops common bonds through a shared interest in the English language and culture to strengthen friendship among members and those they serve.
History
The English-Speaking Union of the United States was created to fulfill a mission. It was formally organized in the United States in 1920, two years after the establishment of its counterpart in the British Commonwealth and arose from the conviction of its founder, Sir Evelyn Wrench and a group of like-minded American and British friends, that maintenance of the close personal and national ties forged during World War I was necessary for the preservation of peace. Sir Evelyn firmly believed that given the opportunity to know one another personally, people who shared a common language would soon discover that they also shared similar values, whatever their differences in nationality or background. He imagined the ESU as an inclusive organization "founded in no narrow attitude of race pride, in no spirit of hostility to any people." Its educational mission would be carried out by a host of activities allowing for personal contact between peoples at every level.
