Alumni

Akshaya Suresh:
Knowing a language is a skill that one should cultivate if there is a chance to learn it. Though Tamil was my first language as a child, I lost most of my fluency when I began attending school in the US. Despite it being the language spoken in my home, I could hardly speak it, let alone read or write it.

To improve my Tamil language, my parents sent me to Lakshmi Tamil Learning Center where Mrs. Lakshmi taught me all the essentials of the language. I started learning Tamil with her from my Kindergarten days and continued until I graduated high school. During these years, I gained not only a considerable amount of fluency in the spoken and written aspects of the language, but also a dear friend.

Everything I learned in the school was very helpful to me as I continued to pursue Tamil education at the college level, studying Tamil poetry and literature. I was able to complete my language requirement at Yale University in one semester by getting straight into Level 5 Tamil, thanks wholly to the excellent training provided by Mrs. Lakshmi.

I am grateful to Mrs. Lakshmi and the school for helping me to reconnect with my mother tongue and to maintain a decent level of mastery in it even today.

Nishrutha Manohar:
Although I spent most of my childhood in America, I have always been extremely interested in my Tamil roots. I have always loved Tamil cuisine, movies, music, and of course, conversation. The only missing component was being able to read and write in Tamil. Enrolling at the Lakshmi Tamil Learning Center allowed me to close this gap.

I studied at the center under the guidance of Mrs. Lakshmi for six years, from middle school up until I left for college. Her teaching helped me improve upon many aspects of the Tamil language, such as grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, and penmanship. I also had the opportunity to participate in school annual day activities, including being an M.C. and hosting a Tamil quiz for other students.

Overall, my time spent at this school was a rewarding experience which allowed me to embrace Tamil culture and further develop my knowledge of the language.

Adarsh Suresh:
I began going to Lakshmi Tamil Learning Center with my sister at the age of two. Although I was too young to properly learn the language, I still remember Mrs. Lakshmi asking me about different animals in Tamil.

I started attending the classes since the age of five. Over the time I have gotten to know Mrs. Lakshmi, Mrs. Raji, and other teachers at the school very well and I truly respect their achievements. All the teachers at the school work on a voluntary basis while some of them are working a full time job.

Mrs. Lakshmi created the syllabus that we follow in the school all by herself many years ago and it has worked flawlessly. She, along with the other teachers, has helped hundreds of students learn how to read, write, and speak Tamil. The teachers also try to use interactive teaching methods to get kids more involved and learn to read and speak more fluently. Recently the school has started having periodical reading and speaking competitions. This gives students a fun way to receive feedback from the teachers and also improves their general public speaking ability.

To me, Tamil class was not a chore; it was an opportunity to get to know my mother tongue better while in America. After these many years of class, I can honestly say that I speak Tamil better than some of my cousins who were raised in India. This achievement would not have been possible without Mrs. Lakshmi.

Divya Umapathy

A wise person once said, “We realize the importance of our voices only when we are silenced”. Like so, I only realized the importance of learning my mother tongue on a visit to India where I was not able to easily converse with my relatives in Tamil. It was heart-breaking to say the least, but it had awoken something in me that day- the passion and hunger to attain something that my cousins in India had– fluency and literacy in the Tamil language.

 Attending Lakshmi Tamil School on the weekends of my formative years was a great joy and something I looked forward to every week. Believe it or not, I even decided to come back to Tamil school briefly after starting college because I missed it that much. Not only did I learn to read and write at this school, but it also gave me confidence in my self-identity, where I was able to blur the distinction between my American nature and Tamil heritage.

 I have worked hard to achieve a level of speech and literacy that makes it difficult for a native Indian to categorize me as American-born. There is much pride I hold in that statement, but I could not have gained all this knowledge without the help of my teachers at Lakshmi Tamil School. I would like to thank Vandana aunty, Raji aunty, Geetha aunty, and Nikila aunty who have taught me over the years and have volunteered countless hours of their time and energy into educating the next generation and instilling in them much more than just Tamil lessons, but also discipline, passion, inspiration, and wisdom beyond years. To all the teachers at Lakshmi Tamil School and to Mrs. Lakshmi herself, I am forever grateful…மிக்க நன்றி!

Sanjay Ramesh

My journey learning Tamil at Lakshmi Tamil School started when I was five years old. Even though I had been surrounded by Tamil culture, I did not know how to read, write, speak, or understand the language. My mother tongue was Sourasthra, but I understood that learning Tamil was also important if I wanted to go to India or communicate with other Tamilians. When I came to Lakshmi Tamil School, I remember starting out learning from Mrs. Lakshmi’s house where there were several teachers teaching groups of students. There, I started learning Tamil with Mrs. Hema, who was my teacher until the time I graduated during high school.

At first, learning Tamil was very difficult for me, and I was not sure if I could actually learn a new language. Even so, the lessons I was taught were effective, and within a few years, I started getting a grasp over the language. A big reason for this was all the events and memories that I got to experience during my journey. Especially during the Tamil annual days, I got the opportunity to sing, dance, perform skits, and give speeches, which helped me expand my application of the language. My fluency also improved greatly thanks to the speech and reading competitions that took place throughout the years. I still think back to the days when I got the chance to be the MC at one of the annual days.

I enjoyed my experiences at Lakshmi Tamil School because of the flexibility and dedication of the teachers. I remember going to Mrs. Hema’s house every week to learn the material and how she would always have tests, reading passages, and other activities prepared for us when we got there. It is thanks to her classes that I have gained the Tamil knowledge I have today.

Looking back on the benefits of studying Tamil, I realize that learning a new language is not the only reward. I am now able to sit and enjoy Tamil movies with friends and family and can also understand conversations with different people. Being able to embrace the Tamil culture that I live around makes me very grateful to have gone to Lakshmi Tamil School.

Thirunirai Mohankumar

As a Tamilian American, my parents provided the most priceless gift of teaching me to speak fluently from my crawling days. It is an honor to have learned the oldest actively spoken and written language in the world. 

As I moved to the greater Atlanta area in the fifth grade, my parents wanted to find a Tamil school for me to join. From then until the time I departed for college, I spent most Saturdays attending Lakshmi Tamil Learning Center.

Mrs. Lakshmi created the curriculum and helped me advance my reading and writing skills to another caliber. To teach with the sole intention of educating the youth is one of the most admirable elements of the school that certainly shaped me into who I am today. I am very grateful for Mrs. Lakshmi and the other teacher’s dedication to the cause.

Assimilating into a new culture while preserving the attributes of one’s native culture is a challenge countless families and individuals face, especially first generation children like me. What will be lost now? What will be lost in 100 years? Hopefully, the answer to both of those questions is nothing.

Sivamalai Chandrasekar

I grew up attending Lakshmi Tamil Learning center during most of my k-12 school years. As a result of this, it allows me to embrace both my US and Indian side.

I started attending classes at Lakshmi Tamil Learning center, and over time, I improved in all aspects of Tamil. Due to the repetition of classes over time, I began to appreciate the language more as I learned. It is very assuring when visiting India since I can comfortably hold conversations and also be able to read and understand Tamil in the cities.

Due to it being more group-oriented than one on one, it gives an opportunity for everyone to participate and provide their input. There would be speech and reading competitions used as motivation by everyone to compete for awards. There would also be an annual day where all the students would come out and showcase their talent. Mrs. Lakshmi prioritized a more “public speaking” type of learning, and I am thankful for her helping me improve in that aspect.

Shobana Santhanam

Shrinidhi Vaideeswaran