For Lanie Angelo, learning to speak Russian has been a difficult but rewarding lifelong pursuit. In high school, she frequently visited her neighbor, Anna, who lived in Moscow, Russia before relocating to Pittsburgh, Pa., where Angelo spent her childhood. After the school day, Angelo would practice her pronunciations and conjugations in Anna’s home, fostering a dedication to learning foreign languages in college.
“I truly believe studying a foreign language completely changes the way you think critically,” Angelo said.
As a double major in Russian and computer science, Angelo often found herself navigating two distinct academic disciplines throughout her time at Wake Forest. Although the oral exams and thirty-minute presentations were daunting tasks for Angelo, she learned invaluable lessons about perseverance.
“Russian is a difficult language to learn,” Angelo said. “Studying it has taught me to not give up on something just because it is hard.”
According to Angelo, her success would not have been possible without support from the close-knit Russian department. One of her favorite memories is the tradition of getting together with her classmates at Russian professor Dr. Kit Pribble’s home to make “blini,” a Russian version of pancakes.
“It’s funny because, as an underclassman, you are usually tasked with actually making the blini,” Angelo said. “I definitely enjoyed getting to sit back and eat the finished product by senior year.”
The group of students studying Russian at Wake Forest is small, fostering a close-knit community of professors and classmates. Angelo knows that these relationships will last through the many seasons of her life. These connections and shared experiences have greatly enriched her educational journey.
“Some of my favorite Wake Forest memories have been getting to know my professors and their stories,” Angelo said. “I will always cherish those simple moments of eating pancakes on my professor’s porch.”
Angelo is not leaving the Wake Forest community quite yet. She is taking all of her talents, skills and experiences learned in the Russian department to the Wake Forest School of Law next year. She plans to pursue cybersecurity or another area of transactional law.
Angelo emphasized the impact of professors, including her major advisor, Dr. Elena Clark, who according to Angelo, takes such an active interest in helping their students succeed. Clark was influential in helping Angelo write her senior thesis as well as law school applications.
“All four years of college, I have taken classes from my advisor, Dr. Clark,” Angelo said. “Her classes were some of the most challenging and rewarding, and they really pushed me to enhance my understanding of Russian.”
While pursuing a degree in Russian has been a fulfilling experience for Angelo, it has also taught her that she can find enjoyment in her studies. There are many opportunities to integrate academics with personal interests in the department, such as Angelo’s senior thesis, in which she compares Taylor Swift to a Russian poet.
“I will die on this hill … Russian is the best department on campus,” Angelo said, laughing.
