The Red & White

In a world of numerous different languages, connections between people, communities, and countries are formed across cultures. Our school took the time last week to celebrate the students who work to contribute towards those connections by building bridges with language. On the evening of October 2nd, students from an array of classes were inducted into the French, Latin, Chinese, and Spanish Honors Societies.

The induction ceremony took place in the Chapel. Four students were inducted into the Chinese Honors Society, eight were inducted into the Latin Honors Society, 12 were inducted into the French Honors Society, and a whopping 29 were inducted into the Spanish Honors Society. Inductee choices were based on factors like teacher recommendations, a maintained grade point average throughout a number of years, and overall effort, passion, and success. Each group underwent a ceremonial routine, varying by the language. The Latin scholars wore laurel wreaths and recited an oath to honor and continue to spread the learning of Latin in their future academic careers. The French scholars carried rope chords throughout their induction, symbolizing their learning journey, and recited a famous French quote alongside their oath to uphold the learning of French. While the Chinese scholars each recited a phrase in Chinese describing their promise to promote and honor the language, the Spanish scholars collectively recited a promise, led by the society president, to do the same with the honoring and spreading of Spanish. In addition to the individual language group routines, all honorees participated in a lighting of the candle tradition. This induction custom symbolizes the enlightenment and passage of language from one class to another. The French, Latin, and Chinese students lit a candle at one end of a line and passed it from inductee to inductee. Meanwhile, the Spanish students approached a large lit candleholder in the middle of the front chapel and lit their candles individually when their names were called. The ceremony followed a neat, sequential order, and it was ensured that every inductee was given the chance to, in their learned language, announce their academic promises to the department and crowd. A smooth ceremony requires preparation, though.

When asked what went into the planning, French Honors Society culture vice president Catherine Bickford ’26 said, “We did two rehearsals in preparation, one with the heads and one with the new inductees.” As for the significance of the event, Bickford said, “I think that this event went a lot deeper than just the language part. It’s about the culture, too. A few weeks ago, we hosted Orange Shirt Day, which is in remembrance of the indigenous schools in Canada. People wrote notes in French on orange handprints and hung them in the hallway. And the notecards had great sayings on them, like ‘you are loved, and ‘you are remembered, and things like that:’ Orange Shirt Day, which occurs on Tuesday, September 30th every year, is a special time to honor and remember a darker aspect of French history: the experiences of Indigenous children at French Canadian boarding schools in the 20th century. Other language groups host similar events, such as Dias de los Muertos, otherwise known as Day of the Dead, which is a time to honor and remember deceased loved ones, and the Chinese New Year, which is a time to celebrate the turnover of the calendar. The efforts and productions of events like these are what set the language honor students apart and signify their titles as scholars.