The Holy Institution Panagia Soumela in West Milford, New Jersey, has opened registration for free online Pontian Greek classes for Fall 2026, continuing a program created for students across the North American Diaspora.
The Fall 2026 classes are organized by Panagia Soumela with the Pan-Pontian Federation of USA and Canada and the Pontian Youth Association of USA & Canada.
Classes are held on Zoom and generally meet on Saturdays over ten weekends, with breaks for some holidays. Scheduling follows New York time, according to the program’s frequently asked questions. Exact dates and class times are provided during registration.
Instruction is not conducted in English. Organizers recommend that participants have a basic knowledge of Greek and be familiar with the Greek alphabet. Those without that background may still join as viewers and follow as much of the material as they can.
The classes are aimed mainly at students in the United States and Canada. Applicants from other countries may also be accepted if space is available and the schedule is workable in their time zone.
Regular attendance is expected. Although sessions are recorded, organizers say the recordings are not intended to replace participation in the live classes.
The instructor, Arhontoula Konstantinidou, is a philologist and certified teacher of the Pontian dialect who has taught in Greece and in programs serving Diaspora communities.
Democritus University of Thrace lists Konstantinidou among the certified Pontian-language instructors invited since the 2019-20 academic year to lecture in undergraduate courses on the dialect. The university’s Pontic Studies program covers phonetics, morphology, syntax and the relationship between Pontian and Standard Modern Greek.
Konstantinidou has also spoken about adapting her teaching for third- and fourth-generation members of the Diaspora, including students with limited command of Modern Greek. Because Greek is the language of instruction, students may be working with Modern Greek and Pontian at the same time.
The North American program began in spring 2025 with ten online classes that concluded in June. Organizers credit Dr. Dimitra Patronidou with proposing the initiative. Additional sessions followed.
Some participants come to the course after hearing Pontian words and expressions from parents or grandparents without ever studying the dialect formally. Others have stronger Greek-language skills or previous exposure to Pontian through family and community life. The online classes give both groups a chance to study Pontian pronunciation, vocabulary and grammar systematically.
Registration for the Fall 2026 session is available through the Holy Institution Panagia Soumela website.