Hinausreichend (Reaching Out)

Germany has invaded the Tangeman University Center (TUC).

Or at least McMicken’s Department of German Studies has.

On April 17, the department hosted approximately 300 high-school students from seven local schools in the Great Hall of TUC. The outreach event, which has taken place annually for 30 years, brings together area students studying German in a day full of competitive games, a German dessert bake-off and an award ceremony for the day’s top competitors.

“It’s quite a spectacle,” said department head Todd Herzog, who volunteers for the event with other German Studies faculty and students, both graduate and undergraduate.

The goal of the outreach event is to enhance the students’ skills of the language with various grammar quizzes, reading competitions, poetry recitals and conversation exercises. A key component of the event is the interaction the students get with participants from other schools.

Charles Heiser, a ninth grader from Princeton High School, participated in a number of events, including the grammar, cultural and poetry competitions.

“It’s great to see this many people here,” he said. “I didn’t think this many schools would be here.”

This year’s event, called “Berlin bleibt Berlin” (or Berlin is always going to be Berlin), commemorated the 60th anniversary of the Berlin airlift and the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall with a self-erected wall featuring artwork done by the participating schools. Some pieces resembled the graffiti that covered the eastern side of the wall before its fall in 1989, while other pieces had themes of hope and freedom.

Linda Zins-Adams, a German teacher from Highlands High School, is a 1993 graduate of the German Studies Department who brings her students every year. The group even dons German Day t-shirts to celebrate the cause and distinguish themselves among the large group of students.

“It’s a great outreach program. It’s great for the high school students to come to campus and interact with the graduate students,” she said. “It’s all about getting practice outside of the classroom.”

Zins-Adams ties the yearly event into her lesson plans. After learning about this year’s theme, her students researched the fall of the Berlin Wall and integrated aspects of their research into a large piece of artwork they brought with them to the event.

“Everyone seems to be having a great time,” said Tobias Gruenthal, a German Studies graduate student who organized the event. “I really appreciate all the artwork that was completed. It was very hard to judge and the craftsmanship of these students is just amazing to see.”

After the morning competitions, the students watched a German film while they sampled the numerous baked goods brought in for the bake-off.

The event lasted well into the afternoon, when a culture bowl took place on stage between the two best-scoring high schools. The winning team received bragging rights—and some prizes.

German Studies senior Sasha Ogden has volunteered at German Day every year she’s attended the University of Cincinnati. The undergraduates helped in a number of roles, from setting up tables to organizing the groups of students and grading the competitions.

“I like seeing the high-school students because they’re so enthusiastic,” Ogden said, who helped grade the poetry recitation. Word memorization, inflection and overall performance were three key factors in determining the winner, she said.

Even though Ogden had to be at TUC by 7:30 that morning, she was excited for the day’s events.

“It’s a lot of work,” she said. “But it’s also a lot of fun.”

Read more about the Department of German Studies:

German Embassy Recognizes UC in Efforts to Educate on ‘Fall of the Wall’ 20th Anniversary