[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 39 (Tuesday, March 31, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E535]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    RECOGNIZING MS. CLAUDIA ALVAREZ FOR HER THIRD-PLACE FINISH IN A 
                         NATIONAL ESSAY CONTEST

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. ZOE LOFGREN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, March 31, 1998

  Ms. LOFGREN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the outstanding 
achievement of Ms. Claudia Alvarez, whose essay on bilingual education 
won a third-place prize in a prestigious national essay contest 
sponsored by Scholastic, Inc., an educational publishing company.
  Claudia's essay, ``Estoy Orgullosa de Ser Bilingue'' (``I'm Proud To 
Be Bilingual''), very eloquently extols the virtues and enrichment of 
bilingualism from her personal perspective.
  Claudia wrote her essay last year as a 5th-grade student at San 
Antonio School, located in the 16th Congressional District of 
California.
  More than 40,000 students nationwide participated in the essay 
contest. Claudia's third-place finish earned her a $1,000 educational 
grant from Scholastic, Inc., which was matched with a grant from New 
Star, an educational testing company. In addition, Claudia has been 
honored by the California Association of Bilingual Teachers at its 
recent convention in San Jose, California and was flown to Dallas, 
Texas with her teacher, Ms. Norma Rodriguez, to be honored by the 
National Association of Bilingual Teachers.
  In its March 4, 1998, issue La Oferta Review, a bilingual newspaper 
serving Silicon Valley, published Claudia's essay in English and 
Spanish.
  Claudia's outstanding achievement is indicative of the potential of 
our young people when provided with the proper educational tools.
  Mr. Speaker, today I ask my colleagues in the United States House of 
Representatives to join with me in recognizing the outstanding 
achievement of Ms. Claudia Alvarez.

                 [From La Oferta Review, Mar. 4, 1998]

                       I'm Proud To Be Bilingual

                          (By Claudia Alvarez)

       I'm proud to be bilingual because that is who I am. I'm 
     proud to be bilingual because my first language, Spanish in 
     my mother tongue. It is the heritage from my ancestors. I'm 
     proud to be bilingual because it is a privilege. When you 
     speak one language well, you may feel like you are holding 
     the world in your hands.
       Those of us who speak two languages is like holding two 
     worlds full of opportunities. Being Bilingual is like living 
     in two rich exciting worlds, which one does not take over the 
     other. Instead, they complement each other. Being bilingual 
     opens more doors to the way of success. Also being bilingual 
     is like having double brain capacity, because I can 
     communicate my feelings, my fears, and dreams in more than 
     one way. Being Bilingual is having double opportunities to 
     communicate these dreams. To be able to speak two languages, 
     is like living in two worlds full of surprises, adventures, 
     and lots of promises for a brighter future. I'm proud to 
     speak English because it is the language I learned at school. 
     It is the heritage I received from the educational system, 
     and it is my country's official language.

     

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