Lianna Gaudry, a French major and Italian minor was recently accepted to the Teaching Assistant Program in France (TAPIF). The TAPIF allows American citizen to live in France for 7 months, teaching English to students in primary or secondary schools. The program gives participants an excellent teaching experience and first-hand knowledge of French Language and culture.
Lianna, who just graduated from the University of Washington Summa Cum Laude also recently passed the Diplôme d'Etudes en Langue Française (DELF) B2 exam. The DELF B2 is an official qualification awarded by the French Ministry of Education to certify the competency of candidates from outside France in the French language. Lianna, a Seattle native, says her love for languages all started when she began learning Italian at 12 years old in anticipation for a trip to Italy. “I was so excited to see where my great grandparents came from and to learn more about my roots!” she says.
In the winter of 2018, Lianna participated in the UW + Amazon Mentorship Program. Lianna worked with Rob Katz in the Alexa department, learning how to succeed at a job and how to stand out during the hiring process. The most important thing she learned “was that your area of study does not matter as long as you can think critically, read and write well!”
Lianna also participated on the Paris in the Summer Study abroad program in 2018. Studying abroad was “truly a life changing experience” she says. While abroad Lianna “made lifelong friends, traveled to five countries, and most importantly, I gained an unmatched confidence in my French skills!” Of the Program Directors Hélène Vilavella-Collins and Hedwige Meyer, Lianna says she is “so grateful for all they did for us they truly became our family abroad! This fall Lianna will teach English in a primary school, l’académie de Grenoble. She choose Grenoble because she says “I wanted to be as close to Italy as possible to keep up on Italian.”
Lianna would like to thank all of her instructors in French & Italian Studies but especially Denyse Delcourt, Albert Sbragia, and Sabrina Tatta for their guidance and encouragement. Lianna has no doubt that her “studies of French and Italian at the University of Washington have made an everlasting impact on my life.” “I have gained a deeper compassion for others as I understand the cultural and linguistical challenges that separate us.” Above all Lianna says “the new perspectives that I have gained through Italian and French have taught me the importance of kindness, as we do not always know the experiences of others.”
.