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Alexandra Traciak
Growing Up Polish in Indiana: Traciak Edition
8/18/2020 12:33:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
HAMMOND, Ind. - Growing up less than three hours from her future home, Purdue Fort Wayne women's volleyball defensive specialist Alexandra Traciak had a childhood unlike many in Indiana. She grew up speaking Polish, watching Polish television, and listening to Polish radio.
Traciak's parents, Grzegorz and Boguslawa, immigrated to the United States when they were 25, finding a new home in Hammond, Indiana. An area with a rich culture, the Chicago metropolitan area is home to around 1.5 million people of Polish descent, making a perfect place to raise a family while instilling their Polish culture.
Alexandra, or "Alley", was born five years later, and her first language was Polish. She did not learn English until she got a babysitter at two years old.
At age three, Traciak attended a Polish school in Munster, Indiana called Polsa Szkoła Języka Polskiego i Tańca im. Św. Rafała Kalinowskiego. The school was only in session on Saturdays, and was meant for children whose parents immigrated to the United States and wanted their children to learn about Polish culture. Traciak learned about Polish culture, literature, history and language and graduated at the age of 17. In her last year, she had to take the matura, which is a type of exit exam, or more literally translated to a "maturity diploma." This exam is a fully comprehensive test of knowledge of any and all subjects taught throughout the students' education, and the questions are selected randomly.
"I was definitely nervous," Traciak said. "We had studied hard all of our final year but there was always that chance that you'd get a question you didn't study or maybe just didn't understand. So once we got going and once we settled down to actually present our answers, I was pretty confident because I got lucky with the questions I had pulled."
Leading into the matura, Traciak attended her school's studniówka, a dance akin to a senior prom. The dance takes place 100 days before students take the matura, and is held to bring good luck for the exam. Traciak had to learn traditional Polish dances throughout her career, as they are typically featured at the studniówka. Her dance had around 1,100 students from different schools around the Chicago area in attendance.
"It was really awesome that we got to party and dance to our favorite Polish songs that we grew up on with people we didn't even know," Traciak said. "It was like a connection that we all had even though we didn't know anyone."
"My parents were really strict about going to school," Traciak said. "And I found out later that my dad didn't think I was going to continue to play. Once I got through the first year, they said I could keep playing, as long as I stay committed to everything else I had on my plate."
It took some discussion with her parents, and working with teachers, but Traciak continued to attend Polsa Szkoła Języka Polskiego i Tańca im. Św. Rafała Kalinowskiego when she could, while balancing it with volleyball and her normal Monday-Friday school. Once she reached high school at Bishop Noll Institute, Traciak started to realize that she may have a future in volleyball.
"I was so set on the recruiting process so I really dove in and tried to learn as much I could about the schools in the area," Traciak said.
When she was 17, she was in her first year with a new volleyball club, and wasn't receiving the attention that she desired from universities in the recruiting process.
"I wasn't necessarily upset with it, because I was getting emails here and there and [defensive specialists] usually get recruited last," Traciak said. "It just wasn't going the way that I wanted it to."
She took the process into her own hands a bit more, and started emailing all the schools within a certain radius of her hometown. Purdue Fort Wayne was the last on her list of schools to email, but the first to respond back to her. From then on, the Mastodons were the front-runner for Traciak.
In her first season with the Mastodons, Traciak played 19 matches, helping Purdue Fort Wayne to an 18-15 record and their first berth to the National Invitational Volleyball Championship. In her sophomore year, the 'Dons will compete for the first time in the Horizon League.
Traciak's parents, Grzegorz and Boguslawa, immigrated to the United States when they were 25, finding a new home in Hammond, Indiana. An area with a rich culture, the Chicago metropolitan area is home to around 1.5 million people of Polish descent, making a perfect place to raise a family while instilling their Polish culture.
Alexandra, or "Alley", was born five years later, and her first language was Polish. She did not learn English until she got a babysitter at two years old.
At age three, Traciak attended a Polish school in Munster, Indiana called Polsa Szkoła Języka Polskiego i Tańca im. Św. Rafała Kalinowskiego. The school was only in session on Saturdays, and was meant for children whose parents immigrated to the United States and wanted their children to learn about Polish culture. Traciak learned about Polish culture, literature, history and language and graduated at the age of 17. In her last year, she had to take the matura, which is a type of exit exam, or more literally translated to a "maturity diploma." This exam is a fully comprehensive test of knowledge of any and all subjects taught throughout the students' education, and the questions are selected randomly.
"I was definitely nervous," Traciak said. "We had studied hard all of our final year but there was always that chance that you'd get a question you didn't study or maybe just didn't understand. So once we got going and once we settled down to actually present our answers, I was pretty confident because I got lucky with the questions I had pulled."
Leading into the matura, Traciak attended her school's studniówka, a dance akin to a senior prom. The dance takes place 100 days before students take the matura, and is held to bring good luck for the exam. Traciak had to learn traditional Polish dances throughout her career, as they are typically featured at the studniówka. Her dance had around 1,100 students from different schools around the Chicago area in attendance.
"It was really awesome that we got to party and dance to our favorite Polish songs that we grew up on with people we didn't even know," Traciak said. "It was like a connection that we all had even though we didn't know anyone."
~~~
When she was 12 years old, Traciak started playing volleyball, which often conflicted with her attending the Polish school."My parents were really strict about going to school," Traciak said. "And I found out later that my dad didn't think I was going to continue to play. Once I got through the first year, they said I could keep playing, as long as I stay committed to everything else I had on my plate."
It took some discussion with her parents, and working with teachers, but Traciak continued to attend Polsa Szkoła Języka Polskiego i Tańca im. Św. Rafała Kalinowskiego when she could, while balancing it with volleyball and her normal Monday-Friday school. Once she reached high school at Bishop Noll Institute, Traciak started to realize that she may have a future in volleyball.
"I was so set on the recruiting process so I really dove in and tried to learn as much I could about the schools in the area," Traciak said.
When she was 17, she was in her first year with a new volleyball club, and wasn't receiving the attention that she desired from universities in the recruiting process.
"I wasn't necessarily upset with it, because I was getting emails here and there and [defensive specialists] usually get recruited last," Traciak said. "It just wasn't going the way that I wanted it to."
She took the process into her own hands a bit more, and started emailing all the schools within a certain radius of her hometown. Purdue Fort Wayne was the last on her list of schools to email, but the first to respond back to her. From then on, the Mastodons were the front-runner for Traciak.
In her first season with the Mastodons, Traciak played 19 matches, helping Purdue Fort Wayne to an 18-15 record and their first berth to the National Invitational Volleyball Championship. In her sophomore year, the 'Dons will compete for the first time in the Horizon League.
~ Feel the Rumble ~
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