Students Celebrate Success in Foreign Languages

A total of 48 students were honored Friday night when they were inducted into one of GHS’s three foreign language honor societies, Sociedad Honoraria Hispánica for Spanish students, Delta Phi Alpha for German students, and Société Honoraire de Français for French students.

The ceremony began with an introduction from Spanish teacher Theresa Kruschke-Alfonso, followed by a message of congratulations from emcee junior Sam Swittel.  After introductions, French teacher Catherine Stressing led the three French inductees in their oath, and Swittel announced their names.  

This process was repeated for the 14 German inductees and 31 Spanish inductees.  After all 48 inductees were introduced, Stressing welcomed the night’s guest speaker, a lifetime German teacher from Wauwatosa East High School.  She spoke about the drive and perseverance it takes to excel in a foreign language and encouraged the students to continue in their studies.

“Foreign isn’t wrong,” she said.  “It’s just different.”

After the speech concluded, Spanish teacher Marisa Bernal congratulated the new inductees once again and dismissed them to enjoy the spread of traditional Spanish, French, and German cuisine prepared for them.

Bernal believes it is extremely beneficial for students to be a part of their chosen language’s honor society.

“I believe it is beneficial for our students to be in a World Language Honor Society because as our Spanish oath states ‘…. a language can be a strong tie between persons of differing origins of race, or religion.’  Being a member and taking this oath also ‘… promotes friendship and understanding between it and the other lands of the world,'” Bernal said.

Sophomore inductee Nick Perzacki has been studying Spanish for most of his life and believes it is important to continue doing so.

“I applied for the Spanish National Honor Society because Spanish as a language has been a major part of my life ever since I was in first grade back at Milwaukee Spanish Immersion School and therefore is something I am glad I pursued further into my current point in time and wish to continue learning about and understanding into my future,” he said.

For sophomore Dominic Castro, being inducted into the French National Honor Society is an important step in his language journey.

“I have always liked French since the first day I decided to take it up. I was in sixth grade at the time and ever since my interest in the foreign language has grown. I thought it only best to take advantage of this opportunity to reconcile my love of this language,” he said.  “My favorite part of the ceremony was to be up on that stage taking our oath with my two friends Van Nguyen and Elsa Liesen, who started out their French careers with me back in 6th grade. We have come a long way and I couldn’t be happier than to have made it this far with them.”

Sophomore Van Nguyen agrees.

“I applied because it was an honor to even be considered for being a member. It was nice to have something to show for all the effort I put into learning French and the effort that I still try to put in every day. It means a lot to me that I am now part of this because being mindful of other cultures and ethnicities is very important to me,” she said.  “My favorite part of the ceremony was when they called all the candidates of each language respectively up to the stage to read an oath. It was really nice to see how many people are dedicated to this type of thing, and that a lot of students are embracing the learning of a new language and culture, and have thrived despite difficulty.”

German inductee sophomore Alyssa Tomczak decided to apply because she knows she wants to further her study of the language.

“I applied to the National Honor Society because I love German. I had the grades to get in and I planned to be in German the rest of high school anyways,” she said.

In order to apply, applicants must meet certain requirements.

“Students who meet the minimum requirements (a certain GPA in the language they study and a certain overall GPA) are invited to apply for membership with a brief application in which they must discuss in both English and their respective languages the reasons the language has impacted their lives and why language study is important,” Havas said.

Perzacki found it fairly simple.

“The application was not difficult at all.  It was actually quite easy because I just had to be honest and explain why I wanted to be in the society as well as have maintained the necessary average GPA in Spanish in order to be accepted in the first place,” he said.

Nguyen enjoyed her application process as it allowed her to reflect on her past experiences as a French student.

“The application was not difficult, though there was a part of it where I had to write a passage completely in French. Naturally, I struggled with that a bit more than the English portion but it was nice to reflect on my journey and how I got to where I am. It was like a walk down memory lane and helped me think about why I pursued it in the first place and why I want to keep pursuing it,” she said.

As members, students are offered a variety of experiences.

“Members continue to promote language through outreach programs such as Sra. Kruschke-Alfonso’s exchange program with an elementary school. We are always looking for new opportunities to promote language learning,” German teacher Linda Havas said.

For each inductee, being a member of their respective Honor Society has a different meaning.

“It means that I have been working hard in my Spanish classes and that I have been comprehending Spanish well. I’m really excited that I got the chance to be inducted.  It was a really cool experience,” junior Spanish inductee Anna Turdo said.

Nguyen recognizes that being a member of the French National Honor Society demonstrates her perseverance.

“Being a member of the French National Honor Society means that learning new languages is worth it, even if you are met with struggle in the beginning,” she said.  “I am always thankful that I kept going and being a part of this group is just another step in the right direction. I am completely humbled to be a participant and I believe that being a member is being diligent and respectful to the culture.”