The Program

With grateful appreciation to Seola Arnaud Edwards, the Friends of French at LSU, Jean Mercier, Maire Adjoint of the town of Barcelonnette, and the people of the Ubaye Valley, LSU’s Department of French Studies is pleased to offer a program of community service internships in the Ubaye Valley. The internship program will provide students of French with an intensive immersion in the French language and culture. It offers you the opportunity to maximize your linguistic potential and develop greater cultural understanding through direct interaction with the French people and culture.

LSU’s Connection with the Ubaye Valley

In 1805 three brothers left the town of Jausiers (near Barcelonnette) for Mexico. The Arnaud brothers established a successful textile business that continued to provide employment for many other emigrants from the valley. The eldest of the Arnaud brothers, Jacques, left Mexico for Louisiana, where he established a family and a plantation. In 1810, the village that had sprung up around his plantation became known as Arnaudville. Recently, Seola Arnaud Edwards, in the course of genealogical research, discovered her famous ancestor and her roots in the Ubaye Valley. As a result of her research and efforts, Jausiers and Arnaudville are now sister cities (Villes Jumellées) and LSU students have the opportunity to “live, work, and play” in this magnificent region of France.