GUAM — When “English” is uttered to a typical college student the first thing that may come to mind is writing and not having an idea of how to write about a topic they could care less about. The English Society wants to change that.
“When you break it down, English is a language and the purpose of language is to communicate and share ideas, feelings and information,” said Nick Abrenilla, vice president of The English Society. “We enjoy all different aspects of the language, and in The Society, we get to share it with likeminded people.”
The English Society is a network of English majors and minors that encourage and support solidarity amongst its members.
They provide a platform for students who have a shared interest in literature, linguistics, education or writing to interact with each other.
This group of highly motivated college students is determined to bring their love of the art as far as they can. In the past, they have held writing workshops for high school students at Guahan Academy Charter School.
Sasha Aldridge a UOG alum and former officer of the organization invited The English Society to Guahan Academy, where she is an English teacher.
During these workshops, the members covered topics important to high school students such as how to write an essay and how to choose a topic for that essay, formulate a thesis, gather information, evaluate sources, organize and synthesize data, form ideas into cohesive thoughts, and cite where they got their references.
Aldridge said that after the first workshop the students were so eager to participate. The high school students notice an improvement in their writings because the techniques they learned took the mystique out of writing essays. The English Society members explained it to the students in a way they understood.
“Sasha gave us a call and asked if we were willing to come down to the school to help give the students some pointers,” said Joe Taitano, president of The English Society. “We held a meeting to discuss it and the members were excited to jump on the project.”
The English Society will be making another trip to Guahan Academy Charter School in December.
They also hold events such as LIT Talks at least once a month, where members can get together to discuss literature, poetry, novels, music, movies and graphic novels or long-form comic books.
“Many people think English only covers books and poetry, but screenwriting for TV Shows and Movies, lyrics for music also fall under English,” Taitano said. “There are many parts of popular culture that have its roots in literature, basically anything that has words has a connection to the language.”
The English Society is open to all who have an interest in the many aspects of English or those who just want to make improvements with their writings.
“You don’t have to be an English Major to join,” said Elizabeth Elmore, a first-year member. “Right now, one of our officers Artemia Perez is not an English Major, she is an Anthropology Major.”
If you are interested in The English Society, you can check them out on Instagram @uogenglishsociety, their blog at uogenglishsociety.wordpress.com or catch one of their meetings every other Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. in room 104 of the English and Communications building during the semester.
