Olympiada of Spoken Russian Awards
On Friday, April 11, 2008, seven Western students participated in the Maryland Olympiada of Spoken Russian at Goucher College in Baltimore County. Medals were won by Samea Shanori (Level One – Silver), Kelly Munroe (Level One – Bronze) and Ellen Blonder (Advanced/Levels 4-5 – Bronze). Because of her success at the advanced level, Ellen will be one of the two Maryland participants in the Olympiada Summer Study Abroad Program, and will receive a partial scholarship toward participation in the program from Goucher College.
Other 2008 Maryland Olympiada participants from Western include Melissa Harrington (Level Three), Sydney Briggs and Courtney Pulley (Level Two), and Cierrah Perry (Level One). These four students will receive the award of Honorable Mention.
The Olympiadas of Spoken Russian, held in various states with Russian programs, were begun in 1962 and as such are the oldest known spoken language competitions in the country. Organization and coordination of Olympiada events in the U.S. are provided by the American Council of Teachers of Russian, which also partially funds and fully provides for Olympiada national finalists to participate in the ACTR Olympiada Summer Study Abroad Program.