As a Bluffton seventh grader Danielle Novak’s understanding of the English language was obvious. 

She won the middle school spelling bee by correctly spelling “palliative,” which knocked out her final competitor.

“I really like learning languages,” says the 2020 Bluffton High School graduate.

This fall she will focus on linguistics, the scientific study of language. 

Her studies will take place at Harvard, making her the first girl and perhaps only one of three BHS students to gain admittance into the Ivy League school. (Fact check: If the Icon has missed a BHS grad who attended Harvard, please let us know.)

Previously Jim Ehrman, BHS 1967, and Sam Houshower, BHS 1999, are Bluffton grads holding Harvard degrees.

“I received an online message from Harvard in mid-December,” she said, “but really waited for a few days afterward, awaiting the official letter, which eventually arrived (before I really felt the shock of being accepted).” 

“I’m really fascinated how languages evolve and how languages connect,” she said about her linguistics interest.

At Bluffton HS she took four years of Latin. She also took Spanish courses at Bluffton University, Ohio Northern University, Bluffton High School, and online. 

For the past two summers she has volunteered in the Putnam County Migrant Education Program at Miller City. There she served as a one-on-one reading mentor with Spanish-speaking elementary school students. “I’m far from fluent (in Spanish), but am comfortable speaking it. I loved being able to connect with the children and the staff there,” she said.

Danielle graduated mid-year from BHS. This spring, she and her mother, a special education professor at Bowling Green State University, visited Slovenia, in eastern Europe. Danielle’s paternal grandparents are from Slovenia, and she has many family members residing there. The COVID-19 pandemic cut their trip short, limiting their visit to only eight weeks.

She intended to take a Slovenian language class at Slovenia’s University of Ljubljana. Although that was not possible due to the pandemic, she is currently taking individual lessons in Slovene online.

While in Slovenia, she led an English Club through a youth organization called Zavod Nefiks, which helps young Slovenians improve their English language skills through conversation. Upon returning to the U.S. the club meetings continued via Zoom.

Danielle says following college she hopes to pursue graduate school. Eventually, she would like to focus on linguistics research, perhaps specifically in neurolinguistics, which explores the relationship between language and the brain. 

This spring Danielle was Allen County’s recipient of the Franklin B. Walter All-Scholastic Award. One student from each Ohio county receives this award, based upon outstanding academic achievement.

A 2020 National Merit Scholarship Finalist, she earned the highest possible ACT score of 36. Less than 4,000 of the 1.9 million students taking the ACT each year attain a perfect score.

Her skills extend beyond academics. 

This year she was one of the top 25 Award of Excellence Winners in the Ohio Governor’s Youth Art Exhibition. As a member of the BHS girls’ soccer team she earned varsity letters as a junior and senior.

She has also taught piano to beginning students at Krysti’s Music Studio, Bluffton. As a member of First Mennonite Church, Bluffton, she served as the youth representative on its Mission, Peace and Service Commission this past winter.

Danielle is the daughter of Mark and Jeanne Novak, 11261 Sugar Creek Road, Harrod, and the granddaughter of Norma Sommer of Bluffton.