Hawthorne High School’s Spanish Honor Society induction took place on April 3, 2013 in the school auditorium. This induction was to initiate new members of the society and to give senior members honor cords.
According to information provided by Spanish teacher and club adviser Karina Rivas, the purpose of the Spanish Honor Society is to honor students who have completed two-and-a- half years of Spanish, have a 90 average, and show an interest in Spanish culture. The American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese founded the Spanish Honor Society in 1953. The HHS chapter, Juan Carlos I, was established in 1977.
To start the ceremony, a large candle was lit. It is the same candle that is used every year, and it symbolizes inspiration to pursue future endeavors. After an introduction from members and HHS students (Kirsten Meneses; Eduardo Perez; and Melissa Pilar, president of the Spanish Honor Society), the inductees recited a poem called “¡EXCELSIOR!” by Núñez de Arce, which is also representative of inspiration. Then, each inductee used the large candle to light his or her own to represent gaining inspiration from the society. Each inductee was able to keep the candle as a reminder of the initiation, along with a certificate and a badge of the Spanish Honor Society.
The ceremony concluded with some words from Michele Hyams, president of the Hawthorne Board of Education; Robert Mooney, superintendent of Hawthorne schools; and Barry Cohen, principal of HHS.
The list of inductees into the Spanish Honor Society this year is as follows: Hector Castillo (junior), Saul Cintron (junior), Nicole Crilly (junior), Zachary Henderson (junior), Christian Melendez (senior), Jacob Meza (junior), Ammy Pena (sophomore), Veronica Rodriguez (sophomore), Jessica Terrizzi (junior), Hannah Van Der Eems (junior), and Allison Zuckerberg (junior).
The seniors who received honor cords are as follows: Renee Buchanan, Daniel Chatten, Noshin Chowdhury, Murad Elias, Matthew Fenkart, Kyle Grootenboer, Leslie Gutierrez, Megan Matthews, Kirsten Meneses, Erica Milbrook, Michelle Pasquale, Melissa Pilar, Steven Prieto, Danial Qureshi, and Vania Rivera.