Language institute chooses F.C. headquarters

A California-based company that specializes in English language instruction in Asia will move its headquarters to Fort Collins and from there direct its global operations.

The English Language Institute/China has been considering Northern Colorado locations for nearly two years, and on Tuesday sealed a $1.45 million deal for a 32,000-square-foot building at 1629 Blue Spruce Drive in north Fort Collins.

The relocation means 75 employees from the institute's current headquarters in San Dimas, Calif., will move to Fort Collins beginning next summer, with the transition completed by summer 2009.

ELIC partners with public universities and private institutions in Asia to provide English language instruction through its satellite offices in Beijing; Hong Kong; Hanoi; and Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. The institute sent its first teachers abroad in 1982 and now fields about 800 teachers annually in Asian locations.

The institute conducted an extensive site-selection process throughout the western United States before settling on Fort Collins.

Jeep Jensen, the institute's executive vice president and COO, said Fort Collins emerged as the best fit for the company and its employees.

"We believe Northern Colorado provides us with the best opportunity to retain and attract highly qualified employees who share our vision for China, Mongolia and Southeast Asia," Jensen said in a statement announcing the move.

The Northern Colorado Economic Development Corp. had been working with the company since summer 2005, coordinating a series of six site visits during the past two years.

"It's been a big team effort, with a lot of people involved," NCEDC Executive Vice President Jacob Castillo said today. "It's involved the city staff, local hoteliers and the real estate community."

While the company's statement said 75 employees would relocate to Fort Collins, Castillo said the number of local employees could go higher.

"They've shared with us that they want to grow," Castillo said. "We anticipate that they'll have those 75, with the strong potential to increase that in the coming years."

Institute President and CEO Tim Davis said his company planned to expand its Asian operations from the new Fort Collins base.

"ELIC is excited about the opportunity to partner with Chinese educational institutions and to send many more teachers in the future," he said in the statement.

ELIC is one of the largest providers of foreign English teachers in China and is the only foreign organization authorized by the Chinese government to provide English recertification training for middle school teachers.

Since its founding in 1982, ELIC teachers have served over 1.2 million students in Asia.

Larry Stroud, a broker and partner with Realtec Commercial Real Estate Services in Fort Collins, represented ELIC in the transaction. Ronn Frank, a commercial broker with the Group Inc. Real Estate, represented the Wyoming-based sellers, Gold Reef Investment Co. The building is partially occupied by other tenants, including a medical billing company.