Dear Classics/Latin Educators of NC,

Announcing NCCA initiative, NC Profs in NC Schools, and online listing of those NC classics faculty who have volunteered to present to k-12 classrooms of North Carolina. As you will see, many of NC’s departments of classics from institutions of higher education are represented. Teachers, do have a look, share the available topics with your students, and feel free to email the professors on this list to set up a class visit in this or next academic year!

 

Coming off a great spring meeting on March 25, courtesy of Dr. Sharon James and UNC-Chapel Hill Classics! There were roughly 30 attendees, half college/university, half high-school faculty, and a varied slate of stimulating presentations. (Med Deli catering was also not bad! 😊) It was great to see so many familiar (and new) faces!

At that meeting, not incidentally, was the inauguration of NCCA’s new president, Travis King, of Page High School, whose term runs through February 2025. Please welcome Travis (cc’d)!!

 

Among the NCCA initiatives in the pipeline are a new, improved NCCA website and along with it an online listing of all NC k-12 Latin teachers with contact info, intended to be available to all up-to-date NCCA members.

 

This may well be your last official NCCA e-missive from me, but I do look forward to seeing you at future meetings, starting with our fall meeting, Sunday, October 8, as part of the FLANC conference in Winston-Salem, for which we now have yet another promising slate of presenters!

 

Yours,

Keyne (a newborn past president, just over one week old…)

Schedule and Agenda

UNC-Chapel Hill, Murphey Hall, Rm. 104

10am     “Approaching Violence and Enslavement in Greco-Roman Sources”

Sarah Brucia Breitenfeld, Davidson College

11am     “Latin Pedagogy for the Non-Classics Student”

Dustin Heinen, NC State University

12pm    Lunch/Business Meeting (working agenda below)

1pm       “Women in Roman Comedy and Roman Life”

Sharon James, UNC-Chapel Hill

2pm       “Money banks, boxes, and bags in the Roman world”

Robyn Le Blanc, UNC-Greensboro

3pm       “Fake News on Aeneas’ Shield? Possible Responses to Lying, Exaggeration,

                and Encomium in Vergil’s Aeneid 8”

James O’Hara, UNC-Chapel Hill

*** 

Business Meeting Working Agenda (12pm-12:50pm)

• Calling for presenters at NCCA/FLANC! (our October meeting)!!
• Budget Report, Secretary-Treasurer Carolina Kelly, Mitchell Community College
• VROMA presentation, Mary Pendergraft, Wake Forest University
• CAMWS announcements/info (Lisa Ellison, NC CAWMS VP, ECU)
• An online directory of NC Latin teachers
• NC Profs in NC Schools
• Election of Officers (terms Feb. 2023 — Feb. 2025)
  • Election of Vice President. Nominee: Caroline Kelly, Mitchell Community College
  • Election of Secretary-Treasurer. Nominee: Andrea Stehle, St. Timothy’s Episcopal School
• Induction of President Travis King, Page High School (term Feb. 2023 – Feb 2025)

When: Saturday, February 25, 2023

Where: Murphey Hall 104, UNC-Chapel Hill

Time: ca. 10am-4pm (come as you are able!)

More details to follow as things come into greater focus.

Please spread the word!

The NC Department of Public Instruction (DPI) is now launching its review phase of updating the North Carolina World Language Essential Standards, our state standards for K-12 World Language learning (INCLUDING LATIN). This is an important time to help shape the future of Latin in our state.

Certainly if you are a NC public school teacher, but also if you a community member who cares about the way (and the extent that) Latin will be taught in our state going forward, I strongly encourage you to subscribe to the NCDPI listservs for World Languages at the NCDPI Email Updates page.

Three Important Ways to Help!

1. PLEASE, please, EVERYONE, take the All Stakeholders Survey for Individuals (open to everyone, including non-teachers/community members). The more people speak to the Latin language, the better, right? (There is a place in the survey to click Latin as the language of concern, and you can take the survey repeatedly to address multiple levels of Latin instruction.) Thank you!(A little more info about the survey at this link.)
2. Apply to serve on the Data Review Committee (DRC), whose members will review the data collected and compiled from Standard-by-Standard surveys, regional focus groups, and interviews, as well as research, policies, and legislation that pertain to World Language education. The DRC will meet periodically throughout the revision process to review and discuss data, as well as draft recommendations for revision. For full information and link to the application, follow this link.
3. Represent NCCA at the table! NCCA may nominate up to two of its current members as representatives on the World Languages Focus Group on the standards. If you are interested, please reply to this email asap. I need to submit NCCA’s reps by this Thursday (10/20). Here are the requirements:
   1. Must attend online World Language Focus Group on Saturday, October 29 from 9:00 am – 12:00 pm, and will earn a Certificate Of Attendance for 3 hours.
   2. Must be a practicing World Language educator who have experience implementing the North Carolina World Language Essential Standards.
   3. Must NOT already be designated to represent their district, charter school, or institute of higher education at another World Language Focus Group on the standards.

Certificates of Attendance (COAs)

These may be obtained by attendees through the online program, following each day’s list of session descriptions.

NCCA-Sponsored Sessions

All NCCA sessions are on Saturday, October 8.

All sessions are in meeting room “Empire C” (see map in conference program).

For logistical reasons, our BUSINESS MEETING is the first session, titled “NCCA and You!” (see below).

• Morning NCCA Business Meeting and Session
  • 9:30-10:20am: NCCA Business Meeting (aka “NCCA and You!”) Keyne Cheshire (Davidson College) see tentative agenda below
  • 10:30-11:20am: Active Learning in the Classroom (K-8) Heidi Dean (Veritas Christian Academy)
• Lunch and Keynote
  • 11:45am-1:20pm: Plated lunch provided + Keynote by Dr. L.J. Randolph Jr., “Beyond Representation: Building and Sustaining Inclusive Language Classrooms” (Imperial Convention Center, only a few paces from our room, Empire C) 
• Afternoon Sessions
  • 1:30-2:20pm: “Status Quo of Latin Vocabulary Learning,” Andrea Stehle (St. Timothy’s Episcopal School )
  • 2:30-3:20pm: “Learning from L1 Literacy Leaders,” Caroline Kelly (Mitchell Community College)
  • 4:00-4:50pm: “The Payoff of Parsing: Principles and Practices for Classics Classrooms,” Dr. Nathan Sundt (Veritas Christian Academy)

9:30am Saturday Business Meeting Agenda (tentative)

If you have suggestions for the agenda, please do let me know!

• Digital Membership Process – how is that working for you?
• Secretary-Treasurer’s Report – Caroline Kelly
  • Membership numbers (in good standing vs not renewed)
  • Finances (income/expenses/current balance)
• Nomination(s) for Secretary-Treasurer?
• Nomination(s) for Vice President?
  • Must be a college/university rep
  • Begins a 2-yr term starting February 2023
  • Becomes president in spring 2025
• List of NC Schools, Colleges, and Universities offering Latin.
  • How should this list be publicized?
  • How much information should be provided?
• Continuing our relationship with FLANC
• Other ideas/initiatives for NCCA?

FINAL NOTE: THERE ARE NO NCCA SESSIONS OR EVENTS ON SUNDAY. The FLANC program currently lists NCCA under exhibits and lunch break for Sunday, but this is an error.

Info on great support from our state (NC) CAMWS Vice President Lisa Ellison!

The purpose of CAMWS’ Committee for the Promotion of Latin & Greek (CPLG) is to encourage and support all activities that promote the study of Classics, and of Latin and Greek in particular, in and outside of schools. Its principal role is to increase awareness, at each educational level, of our Classics community by offering (1) funding opportunities for promotional activities in the schools, (2) help for Latin/Greek/Classics programs in crisis, and (3) an ongoing conversation about how the study of Latin can be promoted best in the field of education.

It is mission item 1, the funding opportunities, that I especially want to draw your attention to.  

Through the Caristia Grant, you can receive up to $50 to help defray costs of such events as a field trip to a museum, a birthday party for Rome, a poetry reading, a family fun day, inviting someone to speak to your class, traveling to a state convention, purchasing a buzzer system for certamen events, an ice cream social, performing a ritual, or a simple Caristia banquet. 

For larger events that promote Classics, whether inside or outside school, apply for the Bridge Initiative Grant (BIG) for up to $500. Toga parties, plays, videos, reading groups, rallies, and Classics Days are just some examples of events you might consider. Be creative! 

Then there are the Keely Lake Travel Grants for School Groups, designed for 7-12 grade teachers who want to take their students on a trip to an excavation, exhibit or historic sites – domestic or international – that both enhances their learning experience and furthers their interest in Classical Studies. You can request up to $2000. 

Finally, you can peruse the list of awards that includes translation exams, travel grants and teaching awards for middle and high school teachers, teacher training and new teacher grants on our awards & scholarships page. 

Please reach out to me at ellisonl15@ecu.edu if you have any questions about these opportunities. They do require CAMWS membership, which is reduced for first-year members to $30. You can find out more about the myriad benefits of membership here: https://camws.org/node/713. Ready to join? Here’s the form: https://camws.org/membershiprenewal

Thank you for your efforts to keep Classics growing in schools across the state!

Sincerely, 

Lisa Ellison

Teaching Instructor of Classics

East Carolina University

NC-VP, CAMWS

Beginning K-12 teachers enjoy reduced FLANC conference rates ($65 off). PLUS, k-12 teachers in their 1st, 2nd or 3rd year may also apply for a scholarship that covers FLANC membership, conference registration, and a free $35 workshop at the conference (Oct 8-9). See “Beginning Teacher Fall Conference Scholarship (K-12)” at this link. Deadline September 23. SPREAD THE WORD!!!

Come join us for a day of Classics and Latin-related presentations at FLANC this October, plus our semiannual business meeting!

When: Saturday, October 8

Where: Sheraton Imperial Hotel in Durham, NC

Reimbursement: This year NCCA is reimbursing $100 of the FLANC registration cost to k12 teachers who are NCCA members in good standing and whose institutions do not offer reimbursement for the FLANC conference. Please contact Secretary-Treasurer Caroline Kelly at quaestor.ncca@gmail.com to request reimbursement.

Registration: Just visit the FLANC conference page here!

FLANC’s Draft Schedule for NCCA

Saturday, October 8

9:30-10:20: Using Digital Tools to Teach About Antiquity(Ashley Cobb, Caldwell Academy)

10:30-11:20: Active Learning in the Latin Classroom (K-8) (Heidi Dean, Veritas Christian Academy)

11:45-1:20: FLANC Plated Lunch and Keynote (free with registration)

1:30-2:20: Status Quo of Latin Vocabulary Learning (Andrea Stehle, St. Timothy’s Episcopal School)

2:30-3:20: Learning from L1 Literacy Leaders (Caroline Kelly, Mitchell Community College)

3:30-3:50: NCCA Business Meeting

4:00-5:00: The Payoff of Parsing: Principles and Practices for Classics Classrooms (Dr. Nathan Sundt, Veritas Christian Academy)

Please Note: The above is a draft schedule. This information will be updated as needed once FLANC makes the final program available. Note also that FLANC is hosting many other presentations and providing boxed lunches to attendees on Sunday, October 9, as well.

It’s time to renew your NCCA membership for academic year 2022/23. Only $25. Renew or join online! It’s easy!

Why not present on Latin/pedagogy at the NCCA meeting at FLANC this fall?

FLANC is planning a return to an in-person fall conference at the Sheraton Imperial Hotel in Durham from Friday, October 8 and Saturday, October 9, 2022.

NCCA has room for a day of 4-5 presentations of 50 minutes (including Q&A), with a box-lunch meeting tucked in the middle. The day is always rich, and it’s great fun to connect, and reconnect!

If you are interested in presenting on anything Latin and/or Latin pedagogy, please email me this week, by Friday (Feb 18) at latest (kecheshire@davidson.edu), so we can begin working together to get your presentation details and our NCCA schedule submitted to FLANC by March 1.

Looking forward to it!