It is now a well-known fact that Ebola is a problem and has recently spread from West Africa to the United States. Ebola is a threat to a number of people, but possibly the most conscious of the virus is the LOTE (Languages Other than English) department, specifically the French Club and French National Honors Society.
The Ebola outbreak is something that is happening in different cultures that make up a part of what the foreign language students study. On top of this, Ebola is happening especially in French speaking countries in Africa like Ghana.
“It affects what we’re studying,” French Club president Katie Holst said. “The languages, the culture, the people. It is affecting something that I have a deep passion for.”
Several French students are concerned about any inaccurate information is being spread around and are trying to find ways that it can be stopped. There have even been meetings dedicated just to helping spread the truth and correct information.
“I would love if French Club or Honors Society were able to help somehow,” French teacher Kelly Simon said. “[Maybe] send care packages to people over there.”
Simon and Spanish teacher Betsy Swann are urging their students to take the virus seriously and not trust everything they hear. Furthermore, they take every chance they can to share the knowledge that they come into contact with.
“It’s a scary news story that’s happening kind of close to home,” Swann said. “I think its [the] responsibility of the school with something like this to acknowledge that some people are feeling fears and give them some tools for dealing with those fears.”