²»Á¼Ñо¿Ëù

Jeff Kraft has nurtured a lifelong passion for the French language, history and culture. He has been able to use his French not only as a teacher, but as a marketing professional and management consultant across the financial services, healthcare, management consulting, and higher education sectors.

Kraft has traveled to, worked in, and lived in Paris for more than 30 years. He began his post-undergraduate career as a teaching assistant at one of Paris' most historic preparatory high schools, Lycée Condorcet, as a Fulbright recipient under the supervision of the French Education Ministry. Later, as a Rotary Foundation Scholar, he was the only American enrolled among more than 60 students working to earn a Master's degree in international communication at the French Press Institute. His thesis chronicled the World War I era of the Paris-based international edition of the New York Herald-Tribune newspaper.

Returning to Chicago, Kraft worked for more than two decades in international marketing and public relations for Citibank, helping to launch financial service products to corporations in Europe and Asia.

His tenure at Dominican University began in 2007 as an independent consultant, conducting market research to help assess the university's reputation among suburban target audiences. He then joined Dominican as its first chief marketing officer, to develop the university brand, help drive increased enrollment for both undergraduate and graduate schools, and support multimillion-dollar capital campaigns. One of his first 'neighbors' in the Fine Arts building was Sr. Jean Murray, the former college president and longtime French department head and professor. In 2013, he resigned from his marketing duties, but not the university, and began teaching beginning and intermediate French language classes.

Kraft believes in the proverb that to "learn a new language is to gain a new soul," unlocking new perspectives to experiencing the world. In addition to teaching French language classes, Kraft also teaches French literature and culture classes in translation (and in English), to reach more Dominican undergraduates who are pursuing majors in international business, international relations, fashion, and health sciences.