Columbia teacher knighted
Contributed by Consulate General of France

Ruta Couet, a veteran teacher of French for more than 20 years and foreign langage coordinator for the state of South Carolina since 1994, was honored with the title of Knight in the order of Palmes Académiques for her service to French language education. This Medal, created 200 years ago by the emperor Napoleon I instituted the academic decoration for services to education, honoring those who distinguish themselves in this sacred mission.

On Thursday, March 1, she was awarded the medal for Chevalier dans l'Ordre des Palmes Académiques by Consul General of France in Atlanta, Philippe Ardanaz.

Ruta Couet has dutifully earned this prestigous award of merit with her service to French language education, having taught from 1983 to 1994 in Massachusetts, New York, and South Carolina, at the elementary, middle, and high school levels. In 2000, she created and produced, in collaboration with the French Embassy and SCETV, a video entitled Why Teach French.

Thanks to her dedication and dynamic efforts, an educational cooperative agreement will be signed on March 20, between the State of South Carolina and the Académie de Clermont-Ferrand in France. This Memorandum of Understanding will facilitate the implementation of common pedagogical projects between classes in France and S.C., allowing the development of assistantship programs, teacher exchanges, as well as bilateral teacher trainings, among many other possible projects.

Ruta Couet received a masters of science in education administration from the State University of New York at Albany in 1993 and a masters of arts in teaching French from the University of Massachusetts in 1988.

Currently, based in Columbia, S.C. she oversees the professional development of the state of S.C.'s 1,200 foreign lanugage teachers and provides technical assistance to the state's 85 school districts in all matters concerning foreign language instruction.