Four Holy Cross Students to Teach in France

Eight seniors at the College of the Holy Cross have been awarded teaching assistantships in France for the 2011-12 academic year. Four students have accepted the position: Esven Carreno, Katherine Holland, Colin Poranski, and Sarah Schwartz. They will have the opportunity to live and work in the country for nine months, and will be joining 1,500 American citizens teaching in France. 

Esven Carreno, a history major with a French minor, will be teaching at the Academy of Poitiers, where he hopes to learn fluent French and become involved in the community by playing on a rugby or soccer team.  At Holy Cross, he is a member of the men’s rugby team, and participated in the New Orleans and Kenya immersion programs through the chaplains’ office. When he returns to the U.S., Carreno plans to attend graduate school to study international relations, and hopes to work for the U.S. State Department.  He resides in Brooklyn, NY.

Katherine Holland, a French major, will be teaching at the Academy of Bordeaux. She is excited to travel in southern France and to form relationships with her students. When she returns to the U.S., Holland plans to earn her masters in social work. On campus, Holland is a member of the Purple Key Society (a service organization which fosters school spirit), the Women’s Rugby team, and is a Kimball (Dining Hall) Captain. She is a resident of Woburn.  

Colin Poranski, an English major, will be teaching at Grenoble Academy, located in the Alps.  Poranski hopes to take advantage of all the Alps has to offer and enjoy skiing and hiking during his stay. He hopes to become involved with the music culture by joining a French orchestra or choir, and giving music lessons to his students.  He also plans to travel. On campus, he is a member of the College Choir and the Chamber Singers, and he performs with other small music groups on campus. When he returns to the U.S., he hopes to pursue a doctorate in English, and teach at the college level.  He resides in Ipswich. 

Sarah Schwartz, a psychology and French double major, will be teaching at the Academy of Toulouse, in the Midi-Pyrénées region in the southwest. She is no stranger to France. She studied in Dijon last year as part of the College’s study abroad program. While in France, Schwartz hopes to improve her French language skills and learn from her teaching experience, “Having a second language has been something that has meant a lot to my education personally and that has really enriched my college experience through the opportunity to study abroad,” says Schwartz.  “I wish I had had more exposure to languages early in life.  I hope to instill in the children I am working with the same appreciation for foreign languages.” 

On campus, she is a program director for Student Programs for Urban Development (SPUD), the College’s largest student-run community service organization, and has been involved with research through the psychology department, and the psychology club’s Sweet Dreamzzz program. She serves as the president of the Jesuit Honor Society, Alpha Sigma Nu, is a member of Pax Christi, and is a peer tutor for Academic Services.  When she returns home, Schwartz plans to attend graduate school for psychology.  She is a resident of West Hartford, Conn.