Freshman excels in Ukrainian, Russian    

A RCS freshmen has proven himself to an be expert in Russian and Ukrainian.

Pavel Voronko took the Ukrainian Comprehensive Exam on January 24, scoring an 88. Less than 24 hours after completing that exam, he took the Russian Comprehensive Exam, scoring a 97. As a result, he earned six Regents credits from the rarely used state exams

“He speaks fluently both Russian and Ukrainian,” said  Dr. Larisa Semenova, professor emeritus from Moscow State University who administered the exams at RCS.

RCS English as a Second Language Teacher John Parker Jr. said Voronko’s performance on both exams is “a great accomplishment for such a young high school student.”

Voronko, the son of Sergey and Natalya Voronko of Ravena, came to US from the Ukraine as a three-year old, living in Cohoes before moving to Ravena six years ago. He is the grandson of famed Ukrainian hymn composer and his aunt – who lives in New York City - is in the process of publishing a book of Russian poems.

He credits his knowledge of the two languages to his family who require him to practice the languages frequently.

“I have to speak Russian to my grandmother when I talk to her and my parents like me to speak Ukrainian at home,” he said.

While most youths his age would be content in their knowledge of two languages in addition to speaking English fluently, Voronko is not. The freshmen is studying Spanish and said he wants to become “quad-lingual.”

Voronko said “I want to become a translator or do something with language” when he finishes his education.