National Italian Exam participants (standing from left) Jack Oswald, Caleigh Camarata, Angelica Cunningham, Shelby Meystrik, Kellen Anderson, Steven Lapp, Haley Veliz Guardado, Tallulah Koepele, Katerin Reyes, Samantha Jimenez Acosta, Bryanna Chavez, Nayeli Umana Bustillo, Kayla Hernandez (kneeling from left) Sabino Gomez Morale and Lily Policastro

National Italian Exam participants (standing from left) Jack Oswald, Caleigh Camarata, Angelica Cunningham, Shelby Meystrik, Kellen Anderson, Steven Lapp, Haley Veliz Guardado, Tallulah Koepele, Katerin Reyes, Samantha Jimenez Acosta, Bryanna Chavez, Nayeli Umana Bustillo, Kayla Hernandez (kneeling from left) Sabino Gomez Morale and Lily Policastro

Finley Students Excel on National Italian Exam

May 13, 2024

J. Taylor Finely Middle School Italian language students once again excelled in the 2024 National Italian Exam initiative. Seventh and eighth graders earned one top achievement monetary award, five medals and six merit awards.

According to the National Italian Exam website, “[the] NIE is the official national language contest for middle and high school students … It is a web-based proficiency and performance assessment that measures written and aural interpretation skills.”

The National Italian Exam has three categories for each level: A (students who have only studied Italian in school); B (students whose native language is a Romance language); and C (students who were raised in a household where Italian is spoken regularly and actively used by its members).

Finley Italian students that volunteered to take this exam ranged in level from Novice to Level I in categories A and B.

Finley seventh grader Samantha Jimenez Acosta, earned a Top Achievement Award and gold medal, garnering a $75 cash award for scoring in the 99th percentile in Level 1 B.

Signora Michelle Viani, Finley’s Italian teacher, held an award ceremony and pizza party to celebrate her students’ achievements. “I’m very proud and pleased with the level of motivation and enthusiasm these students have to push themselves to be better Italian language learners and support each other in their achievements,” she said.

This year’s honorees include:

Top Achievement Award & Gold Medal Winner ($75 Prize)

• Samantha Jimenez Acosta (Level 1 B, 7th grade)

Gold Medal Winner:

• Nayeli Umana Bustillo  (Level 1 B, 8th grade)

Bronze Medal Winners:

• Angelica Cunningham (Level Novice A, 7th grade)

• Sabino Gomez (Level 1 B, 8th grade)

• Tallulah Koepele (Level 1 A, 7th grade)

Merit Award Winners:

• Kellen Anderson (Level I A, 7th grade)

• Millicent Ciccotto (Level I A, 8th grade)

• Bryanna Chavez (Level 1 B, 8th grade)

• Kayla Hernandez (Level I B, 8th grade)

• Samantha Salerno (Level 1 B, 7th grade)

• Haley Veliz Guardado (Level 1 B, 7th grade)

Participatory Awards:

• Caleigh Camarata (Level 1 B, 8th grade)

• Steven Lapp (Level Novice A, 7th grade)

• Shelby Meystrik (Level Novice A, 7th grade)

• Liam O’Brien (Level 1 A, 7th grade)

• Jack Oswald (Level Novice A, 7th grade)

• Lily Policastro (Level 1 A, 7th grade)

• Katerin Reyes (Level 1 B, 7th grade)

• Christopher Reyes Cardona (Level 1 B, 7th grade)

• Isabella Ulloa (Level 1 B, 7th grade)