Congratulations Council of French Societies Oratory Contest Winners

Last month, Newman students competed in the Council of French Societies Oratory Contest held at Metairie Park Country Day School.  Newman faculty members Ms. Lisa Mauthe, Dr. Alison Cransac, Mr. Benoit Cransac, and Dr. Katherine Zell helped prepare Newman’s team for this prestigious competition. This contest was founded after Hurricane Katrina as a way to reward motivated students in French programs in the area and to showcase and support the city’s stellar reputation for immersion and target-language French programs. 

 

The contest’s mission is to reward students who strive to achieve excellence in French oratory & recitation skills, extemporaneous speaking performance, and in the study of the French language. Students had to prepare a two-to-three-minute recitation – using the time-honored rules for French oratory – of prose or poetry to perform for a panel of native speaker judges. Students were then interviewed in French by the panel members. Monetary prizes are awarded to the top three students in each of the seven categories and the students who won were recognized by the Consulate General of France, Mr. Rodolphe Sambou, by the Honorary Consulate of Canada, Mr. Joseph Dunn, and associated dignitaries (including the founding members of the contest Cecile Andry, Brigitte Gomane, Christine LeBlanc, and Alexandra Stafford)  during a formal reception held at the Consular residence the first weekend of December. 

 

Please join us in congratulating the following Newman students for their winning performances:

 

Level  IV and above (non-immersion)

1st place, Zoe Schwartz ’28

2nd place, Wyatt Sosa ‘28

3rd place, Claire Butler ‘28

 

Advanced Immersion Level II :

3rd place, Sabie DeBiase ’27