Year of Languages Essay Prize Winners

The Year of Languages Essay Prize winners and honorable mentions were selected by an interdisciplinary faculty committee from dozens of submissions in more than fifteen languages. The essays are the work of students taking language courses at Rutgers. Students were invited to answer the question, "Why Do I Learn Languages?" 150-word essays were submitted in English and in one or more of the languages that students are studying at Rutgers, The essays eloquently and creatively express a keen understanding of the role that language education and language engagement play in our individual lives and in our communities. Please follow the names below to read our students' essays in Arabic, English, French, German, Italian, Korean, Mandarin, Russian, and Spanish.

Year of Languages Essay Prize Winner

Ezra Campos-Pereira

Information: Major: Finance and French; Language(s) You Are Learning: French, Portuguese; Graduation Year: 2023

Andi Craciun

Information: Major: Visual Art and Philosophy; Minor: Spanish; Language(s) You Are Learning: Spanish; Graduation Year: 2025

Noor Rasheed

Information: Major: Biology and Neuroscience; Minor: Korean; Language(s) You Are Learning: Korean and Mandarin; Graduation Year: 2022

Luis Sanchez-Gonzalez

Information: Major: Linguistics and Biological Sciences; Language(s) You Are Learning: Italian, Japanese, German, French, Mandarin,; Graduation Year: 2026

Julia Sorkin

Information: Major: Genetics; Minor: Russian; Language(s) You Are Learning: Russian; Graduation Year: 2023

Year of Languages Honorable Mention

Anabelle Accetta-Beman

Information: Major: Criminal Justice and Linguistics; Language(s) You Are Learning: Chinese, Russian, Japanese, French, Korean; Graduation Year: 2025

Marcus Cook

Information: Major: Undeclared; Language(s) You Are Learning: Russian; Graduation Year: 2024

William Hoover

Information: Major: Spanish; Minor: German and Linguistics; Language(s) You Are Learning: Spanish, Catalan, German, French; Graduation Year: 2023

Helen Hopersky

Information: Major: Russian and Chinese; Minor: Music and Education; Language(s) You Are Learning: Russian, Chinese (Mandarin), Ukrainian, French; Graduation Year: 2024

Deshik Iyengar

Information: Major: French and Linguistics; Minor: Philosophy; Language(s) You Are Learning: French; Graduation Year: 2025

Mallika Ravi

Information: Major: Cell Biology and Neuroscience and Comparative Literature; Language(s) You Are Learning: Spanish; Graduation Year: 2024

Hiba Shaqra

Information: Major: Molecular Biology and Biochemistry; Minor: Chemistry, Math, and Arabic; Language(s) You Are Learning: Arabic; Graduation Year: 2024