Madelynn Galazia, a student at Union Area School District, presents her project during the World Languages Competition at Slippery Rock University on Tuesday, Oct. 8. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
SLIPPERY ROCK — Although they all came from high schools in Pennsylvania, 500-plus students spoke to one another in many different languages throughout Thursday, Oct. 8, at Slippery Rock University.
The university was hosting its annual World Languages Competition, in which high school students take tests, present information and learn about different languages from staff members of SRU’s Languages, Literatures, Cultures and Writing Department.
Yukako Ishimaru, assistant chairwoman of the department, said there are competitions for Spanish and French speaking, as well as workshops for other languages, including Japanese calligraphy.
Dan Bauer, dean of SRU's College of Liberal Arts, was one of the judges for the poster board competition Tuesday. He said the number of students registered — more than 520 — is the most the event has had since 2020.
The students in the poster board competition displayed their work in one of the classrooms in SRU’s Advanced Technology and Science building. Each poster board tackled a different topic, and most communicated their ideas in a language other than English.
Kayla Lovell, a student from Norwin High School, presented a board focused on the effects of bilingualism — a topic she said was near and dear to her.
“I was raised in San Diego, Calif., like 15 minutes from the Mexican border, and Spanish was very heavily spoken,” she said. “It’s just a topic that has always interested me as someone who has been around Spanish their entire life.”
Rylee Glenn, a student from Union Area School District, presented a board on a volcano in Costa Rica, which focused on biodiversity in the area
Madelynn Galazia, another student from Union Area School District, presented a board on Pablo Picasso, whom she said is an artistic inspiration to her.
“I love doing art, and looking at historical figures; (Picasso) stood out in the way he made a name for himself,” Madelynn said. “That’s just something I look up to and want to do in the future.”
Other students took part in the Japanese calligraphy workshop, hosted by Ishimaru. Brennan Saxton, a student from Northwestern High School, said he is in a German club at his school but took the Japanese workshop at the recommendation of a teacher. As he painted Japanese letters, he said he was enjoying the experience.
“There wasn’t any German here, so our teacher wanted us to try out something else,” Brennan said.
Brennan Saxton, a student at Northwestern High School, practices Japanese calligraphy during a class at the World Languages Competition at Slippery Rock University on Tuesday, Oct. 8. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
Gunner Hiebner, a student at Northwestern High School, practices Japanese calligraphy during a class at the World Languages Competition at Slippery Rock University on Tuesday, Oct. 8. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
Madelynn Galazia, a student at Union Area School District, presents her poster board project during the World Languages Competition at Slippery Rock University on Tuesday, Oct. 8. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
Rylee Glenn, a student at Union Area School District, presents her poster board project to Dan Bauer, dean of Slippery Rock University’s College of Liberal Arts, during the World Languages Competition at SRU on Tuesday, Oct. 8. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
Yukako Ishimaru, assistant chairwoman of the Department of Languages, Literatures, Cultures and Writing at Slippery Rock University, teaches Japanese calligraphy during a class at World Languages Competition at Slippery Rock University on Tuesday, Oct. 8. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
Rylee Glenn, a student at Union Area School District, presents her poster board project to Dan Bauer, dean of Slippery Rock University's College of Liberal Arts, during the World Languages Competition at SRU on Tuesday, Oct. 8. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
Kayla Lovell, a student from Norwin High School, presents her poster board project to Derrick Pitard, a professor at Slippery Rock University, during the World Languages Competition at SRU on Tuesday, Oct. 8. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
Rylee Glenn, a student at Union Area School District, presents her poster board project to Dan Bauer, dean of Slippery Rock University's College of Liberal Arts, during the World Languages Competition at SRU on Tuesday, Oct. 8. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
Kayla Lovell, a student from Norwin High School, presents her poster board project to Derrick Pitard, a professor at Slippery Rock University, during the World Languages Competition at SRU on Tuesday, Oct. 8. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
Rylee Glenn, a student at Union Area School District, presents her poster board project to Dan Bauer, dean of Slippery Rock University’s College of Liberal Arts, during the World Languages Competition at SRU on Tuesday, Oct. 8. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
Kayla Lovell, a student from Norwin High School, presents her poster board project to Derrick Pitard, a professor at Slippery Rock University, during the World Languages Competition at SRU on Tuesday, Oct. 8. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
Kayla Lovell, a student from Norwin High School, presents her poster board project to Derrick Pitard, a professor at Slippery Rock University, during the World Languages Competition at SRU on Tuesday, Oct. 8. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
