November 2003 - Nr. 11
44 German Language Awards
at WLU in Waterloo
by Herwig Wandschneider
44 Students received awards totalling over $20,000 at the annual German Language awards ceremonies – also known as the Bitzer Awards - organized and supported by the German-Canadian Business and Professional Association (GCBPA) of Kitchener Waterloo.
This year GCBPA’s Bitzer Event committee, chaired by Dr. Marga Weigel, selected the Maureen Forrester Recital Hall at Wilfrid Laurier University as the venue. The academic environment appeared not only appropriate for recognition of the outstanding accomplishments of the students, but also congenial for socializing among the many dignitaries, organizers, academics, relatives, and of course students, before and after the ceremonies.
![Dr. Robert M. Campbell, Dean of the WLU Faculty of Arts [photo: Dolf Bogad]](311c-HW-GL_Robert_Campbell.jpg)
Keynote
speaker, Dr. Robert Campbell – Dean of the Faculty of Arts at WLU and
Professor of Political Science – eloquently conveyed what takes so many
students to fully comprehend often too late, namely that learning another
language opens a whole new personal and professional vista on the world.
Clearly these students had a good early understanding of the benefits that
come with knowing more languages.
![Award winners of 2003 [photo: Dolf Bogad]](311c-HW-GL_Winners.jpg)
Top awards went to Justin Armitage and Goran Milojevic, both of Cameron Heights Collegiate I (CHCI), in the regular and advanced categories respectively. The Wanderpokal (School Trophy) also went to CHCI, earned by the team of Justin Armitage, Ilvana Lupic, and Goran Milojevic.
![Ron Rodes accepts his award from Karen Scherl, member of the GCBPA [photo: Dolf Bogad]](311c-HW-GL_Scherl.jpg)
While
the awards focused on the students, new this year was the recognition of the
teacher, who made it possible for the students to excel. The first
"Distinguished Teacher Award" went to Ron Rhodes, who taught German at CHCI
for 27 years. The most honoured students, who received top awards in the
individual and team categories were his students, and clearly the
teacher deserves some credit.
In response to receiving his award, Mr. Rhodes modestly again focused on the students, saying "Wir können davon ausgehen, dass alle Preisträger die Universität besuchen und im Berufsleben erfolgreich sein werden." Surely they will be successful, assuming they continue to receive the quality guidance and teaching provided to this stage in their lives by Mr. Rhodes and his colleagues.
