NORTHFIELD, Mass. Northfield Mount Hermon School senior, Alexander Levy, the son of Daniel Levy and Jacinta Coleman of Fairfield, Conn., received the Award in Russian 4 at the Northfield Mount Hermon Class Day Prize Assembly on June 3.

Levy achieved an additional accomplishment in Russian language studies when he was awarded a Golden Medal and first place in the New England region at the New England Olympiada of Spoken Russian held in Cambridge, Mass. on May 14. The Olympiada is sponsored by the American Councils Mission in Washington, DC, a not-for-profit education, training, and consulting organization specializing in the countries of eastern Europe, Russia, and Eurasia. The Olympiada of Spoken Russian has occurred annually since the 1960s, and is modeled after oral-speaking competitions held within the Russian educational system.

Levy’s success is especially noteworthy because he had studied Russian at Northfield Mount Hermon for only two years, while the other 99 regional competitors had studied the language for at least three, and in some cases, up to six years. He has been named a member of the 2000 U.S. Olympiada Team, and will travel to Russia later this summer to participate in a cultural immersion program with 14 teammates.

For more background information, go to the ACTR web site.