Joëlle Aaslestad

World Languages

Pantheon Sorbonne 

Joëlle Aaslestad joined the Miller School faculty in 2026. She has been teaching French language and culture in the United States for nearly three decades. After finishing a law degree at the Sorbonne in her native France, Joëlle found her true calling as a language instructor following a move to the US in 1992 - first to Connecticut and then to Virginia in 1996. She has led classes at every level in both public and private schools systems: from introducing French to middle schoolers in Staunton city schools or at Stuart Hall to offering courses in both language and culture at Mary Baldwin University. An avid reader and lifelong lover of books, Joëlle has also cultivated her interests in music and the visual arts. She is the writer and host for the weekly radio program “Cartes Postales” on WQSV in Staunton, sharing her broad interest in Francophone music worldwide - since 2019. For several years she was director for the Beverley Street Studio School in Staunton, connecting painters and visual artists with students and organizing gallery presentations. Today she is active as a board member to “Gallery 22” which opened in Staunton in 2026. Other lifelong passions include being a locavore, swimming, and practicing yoga.