STA News

Lower Schoolers Shine in National Spanish Language Competition

 
In this year's National Spanish Language Competition, Lower School students secured a remarkable nine gold (three perfect scores), twelve silver, and nine bronze medals, in addition to eighteen honorable mentions. The achievement of earning a medal or honorable mention on the National Spanish Exam is a testament to the dedication and hard work of our students.

With a rich history dating back to 1957, the National Spanish Exam is administered annually by the American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese and serves as a cornerstone of academic achievement in Spanish language education. The NSE attracted over 80,000 student participants in 2024. 

Our students' success is not an isolated incident but rather a reflection of St. Albans School's longstanding tradition of academic excellence in Spanish language education. Our students have consistently excelled on these exams, thanks to the guidance and expertise of our dedicated Spanish teachers:  Ms. Kelly Castellanos Evans (Form II), Mr. Daniel Finer (Forms A and I) and Ms. Lisa Blanford (Forms C, B and I).

We extend our heartfelt congratulations to all the students who participated in the competition and commend them for their hard work, determination, and commitment to mastering the Spanish language.

Students participated within three National Spanish Exam categories, Classroom Experience, Outside Experience and Bilingual.  Unless otherwise listed, students competed within the Classroom Experience cohort.

ORO GOLD
Level 1 (Form II)
  • Jacob Bellinger
  • Alistair Chapel (perfect score)
  • Rey Lall
  • Jacob Menkes (perfect score)
  • Joshua Weinstein
Level 01 (Form I)
  • Sheku Kamara (perfect score)
  • Ben Reid
  • Arthur Rosenstein
  • Julian Shutzer
PLATA SILVER
Level 1 (Form II)
  • Dara Bakhtyari
  • Ashar Barrage (Bilingual)
  • Henry Hall (Bilingual)
  • Henry Pistilli
  • Ozzie Wright (Outside Experience)
Level 01 (Form I)
  • Aiden Bagheri
  • Noah Bajoghli
  • Nico Bohlen
  • Luke Kavounas
  • Henry Miller
  • William Nikodem
  • Carson Smith-Williams
BRONCE BRONZE
Level 1 (Form II)
  • Taylor Matthews
  • Nico O’Leary (Bilingual)
Level 01 (Form I)
  • Oliver Chassin
  • Benjamin Chew
  • Eli Coffen
  • Sam Rose
  • Alex Shin 
  • Joshua Taylor
  • Jack Tracy
HONORÍFICA HONORABLE MENTION
Level 1 (Form II)
  • Austin Friend 
  • Jack Guerin
  • Isaac Joemah III
  • Mac Ritsch
  • Suhail Shah
  • Duran Tazewell
  • Sid Vaid
Level 01 (Form I)
  • Dixon Dean
  • Max Jaeckel
  • Turner Kranbuhl
  • Dylan Mistri
  • Ben Pershkow
  • Archer Pollak
  • Thomas Sharp
  • Ben Thompson
  • William Van Horne
  • Matthew Wells
  • Beau Wymard
Back
Located in Washington D.C., St. Albans School is a private, all boys day and boarding school. For more than a century, St. Albans has offered a distinctive educational experience for young men in grades 4 through 12. While our students reach exceptional academic goals and exhibit first-rate athletic and artistic achievements, as an Episcopal school we place equal emphasis upon moral and spiritual education.