As interest in the study of foreign languages grows, more and more school and district leaders will be charged with the responsibility of establishing a language program. Some of the questions that they will need to answer include: What language and what model should be selected? How could another program be inserted in a school day already crowded with curriculum and assessment mandates? What financial, curricular, and personnel considerations must be evaluated? In this article the author reviews the advantages of starting the study of a language early, outlines briefly the status of foreign language instruction, and looks at the main models used currently. The author also discusses how a school district introduced a successful language academy within a modest budget and outside of the school day.