Anne Bahr Awarded French Government Teaching Assistantship

Anne Bahr knew early in her academic career at Wheaton College she would pursue her passion for French language and culture. A native of Thornton, New Hampshire, Bahr was awarded a French Government Teaching Assistantship this spring through the French Ministry of Education. She earned her baccalaureate in French studies in May.

Bahr's love of the language began as a child learning French from her mother. At Wheaton, she immersed herself in French studies. She explored the written language while writing her honors thesis on translation. She translated texts from six French authors into English, and discussed the process along with the challenges and successes of each work. She considers her French experience the highlight of her time at Wheaton.

Bahr will spend nine months teaching English as a foreign language through the Académie de Dijon. She returns to France after spending the fall of 2006 abroad in Paris. She took classes through the Sweet Briar program and at the University of Paris IV.

While at Wheaton, Bahr became co-president of the French Club, a peer advisor for the Center for Global Education, and a French tutor for underclassmen. She also served as a Senior Preceptor, a peer academic mentor program. According to Linda Carlson, Associate Dean of Studies, "Given her academic achievement and personal commitment, Anne has the potential to ‘make a difference' in France through the French Teaching Assistantship and in the future when she returns to the United States."

Excited about representing her home country abroad, Bahr sees her assistantship as a way to share the educational experiences she enjoyed at Wheaton. "I would like to teach English in France because it would allow me to give others the same opportunity to study a foreign language as I received. …English is becoming more of an international language," she said.

Bahr also hopes the opportunity will help focus her career. Teaching is one of the paths she may take. ''Upon returning to the U.S., I plan to look for a teaching position in a private school in New England where I can teach French to high school students. I also want to investigate graduate schools with ESL programs in order to teach English to immigrants with various linguistic backgrounds'' she wrote in her application to the program.