The Storm King School hosted a special visitor from USMA at West Point last week. On Thursday, January 18, Foreign Language Department Deputy Head and Professor of Arabic Colonel John Baskerville spoke to our students about the importance of learning foreign languages. Col. Baskerville was joined by his colleague Captain Serge Ngwanza who is an Instructor of French and the father of 8th-grader Cody Ngwanza. Together, the officers shared many valuable insights from both a cultural and a career perspective.

“Open the World” is the motto of the Foreign Language Department at West Point.  Col. Baskerville explained that every cadet, regardless of their major, is required to take at least two semesters of a foreign language during their time at the Academy. “Why, do you ask?” he said, posing the question to the students. “Along with facilitating good communications, knowing another language develops complex problem-solving skills, encourages creative thinking, and develops leaders of character,” he explained.

 

 

The Colonel’s message resonated well with Storm King’s diverse community of students from 26 countries. “When I saw all the flags in the dining hall, I knew we were starting with some common ground,” he said with a smile. “Language and cultural knowledge is a bridge to understanding, and cultural diversity expands one’s views of the world.  In light of the issues we face today, you can see how important this is. As students here at Storm King, you are already ahead of the game,” Col. Baskerville explained. The Colonel closed his speech with a quote from Nelson Mandela that expressed his message to the students perfectly: “If you talk to a man in a language he understands it goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, it goes to his heart.”