Picture this: fresh baked croissants and the sound of French rap echoing through North Atlanta’s halls. Come mid-April, our school will be home to the National French Honors Society Club, a new club that was founded by sophomore Lilly Nail.

North Atlanta has many different target language options, along with their  corresponding honors societies. The school has long had the Spanish Honors Society. Nail said the existence of this club was her motivation to see things happen on the French side. “It just always felt like French has been underrepresented,” Nail said.

Nail and others are in the building stage toward inaugurating their club. In the next few months they hope to move from preliminary club status toward being a full-fledged and credentialed honors society.

A professed “Francophile,” she has taken French classes since kindergarten at Sarah Smith Elementary School and is currently taking honors French IV from French teacher Nawal Aquachar.

For many students, a foreign language is a pleasant elective diversion.  To others, speaking a foreign language is something they have grown up with and continued since elementary school. For Nail, her target language instruction has been an ongoing labor of love. “I really love French. It’s something that I’ve loved since I started learning it,” she said.  

Despite not having their first meeting yet, the newly formed club plans to have meetings once a month after school on Mondays beginning in April. “It’s only once a month so it’s very low commitment,” she said.

Nail said the group will meet in either Aquachar’s room or in French teacher Phillipe Maury’s room. The club already has 10 committed members and hopes to have at least 20 by August of the coming year. Club members will work on learning about French culture and tutoring kids who need help in French. “We hope non-French speaking people will come as well,” Nail said. “The club will be a great way to learn about the French culture and build a community.”

For programming, Nail said the group will watch French movies, eat French cuisine, and listen to contemporary French music. “France has the second biggest rap industry in the world and it’s definitely an interesting topic to discuss,” she said.

The French National Honors Society will be good for food, people and cultural experiences. So say “Salut” to North Atlanta’s newest club: the French National Honors Society.