The Museum and Exhibition Center of the Institute of Foreign Languages opened its doors in November 2025 for a visit to the exhibition “FLA/IFL 1965–2025,” which was dedicated to the 60th anniversary of foreign-language education in Karelia, the 85th anniversary of Petrozavodsk State University (PetrSU), and the 80th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War.
The history of PetrSU is inseparably linked with the history of the first Karelian higher education institution — the State Pedagogical Institute (KSPI). The institute, where future Karelian teachers studied, was created in 1931. Petrozavodsk State University was opened on September 1, 1940, on the basis of KSPI. In February 2013, the Karelian State Pedagogical Academy (formerly KSPI) was reorganized by merging into Petrozavodsk State University. Therefore, veterans of KSPA/KSPI are also considered veterans of PetrSU.
The photo exhibition “FLA/IFL 1965–2025” includes several sections: the history of the faculty, student life, and international activity. An important place is occupied by family archival material of veterans of the Great Patriotic War — teachers and students of the FLA (Faculty of Foreign Languages). A separate essay, prepared by the Department of German and French Languages, is dedicated to the biography of Sergey Vladimirovich Klodt.
Sergey Vladimirovich Klodt — pilot, teacher, interpreter, and enthusiast
Sergey Vladimirovich was born in Nikolaev (Ukraine) on March 24, 1923. In 1937 his father was repressed, and the family was exiled. A participant in the Great Patriotic War, he served as a fighter pilot on the southern front.
After completing his studies at the Lesgaft Leningrad Institute of Physical Culture, Sergey Vladimirovich devoted many years to the development of Karelian sports: he became a coach, a teacher at the Department of Physical Education and the Department of Theoretical Foundations of Physical Education at KSPU, and an honored worker of physical culture of the Republic of Karelia.
In the 1990s, S.V. Klodt was a member of the “Karelia — Germany” friendship society and the permanent interpreter at meetings of the sister cities of Petrozavodsk and Tübingen. He had many hobbies: photography, video filming, foreign languages, and amateur radio.
Using radio equipment, S.V. Klodt established communication with Tübingen during the transportation of humanitarian aid. Thanks to his translation work, he significantly expanded his knowledge about relatives in Russia and Germany with the surname Klodt and met distant relatives.
The honored guests of the exhibition were the daughter and granddaughter of Sergey Vladimirovich — Maria and Polina Klodt. Maria Sergeevna is a rhythmic gymnastics coach and a candidate for master of sports.
The interpreter’s granddaughter, Darya Klodt, studied at the Faculty of Foreign Languages of KSPU, continued her studies at the University of Dresden, lived and worked in Germany for a long time, and now lives and works in St. Petersburg.
Her relatives recall that Sergey Vladimirovich independently maintained his knowledge of German and could freely understand and communicate in it. Stacks of German textbooks always lay in the house, and thanks to her grandfather, Dasha easily learned German and was immersed in the language environment.
Visit to the exhibition
The daughter and granddaughters expressed gratitude to the Institute of Foreign Languages and the Museum and Exhibition Center of the Institute of Foreign Languages “The World of Languages and Cultures” for preserving the memory of past generations and for the opportunity to immerse themselves in memories of their years of study at the university.
Author: Associate Professor of the Department of German and French Languages of the Institute of Foreign Languages, curator of the Museum and Exhibition Center of the Institute of Foreign Languages, Yakovleva E.A.
