GUEST SPEAKERS ARAM HAMPARIAN, SEVANA TCHAKERIAN JOIN SIAMANTO ACADEMY IN INFORMATIVE VISIT

On Saturday, November 13, 2021, Aram Hamparian paid a visit to Siamanto Academy students to deliver an update on current events in Armenia and Artsakh. Mr. Hamparian is a well-known face of Armenian Advocacy and the Executive Director of the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA). He is the resource for all Armenian issues and Armenia-US relations. Members of the Armenian youth along the East Coast know him well, as they have all had the opportunity of hearing from him.

This is the second year in a row that Mr. Hamparian has spoken to Siamanto students about the current events in the homeland. The situation in Armenia has changed greatly since 2020. Thus, there are always new ways for the youth to act, get informed, and involve themselves in fighting for Armenian causes, especially if interested in communications, advocacy, and government policy. Mr. Hamparian mentioned various opportunities for high school and university students within the ANCA programs. Additionally, he encouraged interested students to volunteer their time to Armenian programs that will help develop the nation.

Siamanto students were also visited by French-Armenian singer, songwriter, and educator Sevana Tchakerian. Ms. Tchakerian is one of the writers/singers of Yertik, as well as a member of a duo group Jinj the Band and band Collectif Medz Bazar. Yertik’s goal is to help young Armenians not only learn Armenian but to enhance their speaking and comprehension skills including Armenian vocabulary This effort is driven by the goal of preserving Western Armenian and continue to spread the word in the most creative ways. Driven by this mission, she traveled to Artsakh during Armenia’s most difficult times last year and to sing with the young children there.

The guest speakers engaged the students, who look forward to more such special visits in the future. For those who don’t know, Siamanto Armenian Academy is a weekly Saturday Armenian Culture and Language enrichment school for ages 13-18 that originated in New York. The school’s curriculum is designed to help students learn, improve, and practice Armenian. The program has since become 100 percent virtual, which allows for a broader geographic student base and has continued to flourish in maintaining strong connections with their students.

Lenna Kevorkian,
Second Year Student