Thirty Hastings students in Farragut Middle School and Hastings High School earned national awards for their scores on the National Latin Exam (NLE). A special reception was held on May 24 to celebrate, with awards presented to top scorers. Schoolmates, administrators, staff, family and friends were all in attendance.

Over 100,000 students from all 50 states and 13 foreign countries competed in the NLE. Latin teacher Ellen Driscoll registered Hastings' students in January and administered the exam during class in March. The World Languages Department generously sponsored all registration fees.

After scoring in the top percentage at their academic level, students were presented with the following awards: cum laude (with honors), magna cum laude (with high honors), maxima cum laude (with very high honors - silver medal), and summa cum laude (with the highest honors - gold medal).  

Click here for the list of award winners by rank.

"This is a tremendous point of pride for our students and for the Hastings World Languages Department," said Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum & Instruction Melissa Szymanski.

"Kudos to our learners for their dedication, perseverance, and achievement. Gratitude goes to Mrs. Driscoll for her instructional expertise and commitment to student success."