In April, students from Putnam County High School competed in the Northern Illinois Chapter of the American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese Cultural Interpretation Contest at Mendota High School.
There were over 100 students that participated in the contest from Ottawa, LaSalle-Peru, Mendota, and PC High School. The PCHS students had entries in poetry recitation, music, dance and art.
In the dance category, Maggie Spratt and Eme Bouxsein received 1st place and in the music category, Cole Vipond (piano) received 2nd place and Alex Myres (clarinet) received 3rd place. In the poetry recitation category, Alexis Glenn received 2nd place.
The art category for the competition included paintings, drawings, mixed media, model and photography.
In the painting subcategory, Katelyn Liles and Gracie Ciucc tied for 1st place, Conlan Cwikla received 2nd place and Avery Moutray received 3rd place.
In the drawing subcategory, Carter Holmes received 1st place and Bailey Herr received 3rd place.
In the mixed media subcategory, Mikenna Boyd received 1st place, Hannah Taliani received 2nd place and Meredith Lamis received 3rd place.
In the model subcategory, Haven Sittler and Maggie Richetta received 3rd place while Paige Terando received Honorable Mention for her cosplay photo in the photography subcategory.
This contest has been held at Mendota High School for more than 25 years and is an opportunity for students to use the language and experience culture outside of the classroom.