Oops, I mis-remembered the dates of my attendance. After checking my diploma, I graduated in Sep 1982. Yes, I still have my diploma. Surviving the DLI is an achievement worth remembering.
I was Chinese-Mandarin.
Yeah, Chinese-Mandarin was quite a bit more daunting than Russian. But Russian was bad enough. I still use it and am pretty good.
But DLI back then was epic. My wife loved the Clam chowder places down on the boardwalk and the restaurants overlooking the ocean.