Two French embassy workers came to Jefferson to speak with the French Honor Society n Wednesday, Dec. 5th during 8th period. The event was organized by French Honor Society members who wanted to give French students at Jefferson an opportunity to learn about how speaking French is not just something that stays within the school.

“[French Honor Society Members] had this idea to bring somebody from the embassy so the kids could ask questions or have a contact with the embassy and find out about educational and job opportunities,” French teacher Cynthia Van De Kamp said. “[The students] can see how they can use French outside of school and open their minds and make a connection with what they do in the classroom.”

At the meeting, the two embassy workers, Heather Seeley and Solène Burtz, put together a presentation to speak about the importance of French in today’s society.

“French is the fifth most spoken language, with 275 million people speaking it around the world,” Seeley said.

In addition, the embassy workers mentioned French colleges available to American students, including Sciences Po and University Pierre and Marie Curie. A teaching opportunity, Teaching Assistant Program In France (TAPIF), was also brought up, making students realize how they could use their French speaking skills in the real world.

“It’s really nice that they brought in that suggestion,” Van De Kamp said. “You need to start planning things you’re going to do in college or after college.”

Through their presentation, Seeley and Burtz made students realize how meaningful learning a language can be. Their presentation showed that learning a new language can lead to many new experiences and opportunities even after high school, giving us a reason to be even more passionate about the subject after understanding the importance it has.

“It’s always good to hear about the importance of French from people who are not in this school, so [the students] can see how they can use French outside of school,” Van De Kamp said.