by Gaby Krengel | staff writer
On Feb. 19, the 33rd Annual Regional Japanese Speech Contest was held virtually and hosted by San Antonio College.
“The whole competition was pretty nerve-wracking but it ended up being all right for the most part and it was a unique experience,” freshman Mackenzie Bates said.
Japanese language students won first, second, and third places in poetry recitation, third place in Haiku recitation, and second and third place in free speech.
“Honestly, I was actually quite disappointed when I saw that I got third because I’m very hard on myself but I received a lot of support from family so that really helped me,” Bates said.
Bates also hopes that her Japanese skills will help her later in life.
“I’m very determined to go to Japan one day so I figured it would help me really be immersed in the culture for when I do go,” Bates said.
