Katy Burch-Hudson

December 19, 2008 | 1:22 p.m. CST

Katy Burch-Hudson, a junior at Columbia Independent School, has taken Latin for 5 years and completed AP Latin. The 16-year-old Los Angeles native said she appreciates the ability to read ancient texts in their original language.

“It’s important because a lot of classics are written in Latin that are so highly esteemed by many great professors, and reading the original version really adds to your understanding of the text rather than just reading the translated version,” Burch-Hudson said.