On March 25-26, 2011, our own Jesuit Latin Club took part in the Texas State Junior Classical League, or TSJCL, state convention. High school Latin scholars and wannabe gladiators from across the state descended upon Humble, Texas, for a host of academic tests, Jeopardy-style “certamen” (Latin for competition), traditional Roman sport, and a blow-up Coliseum obstacle course thrown in for good measure.
This year’s TSJCL State Convention, a competition that dates back to the 1970s, featured two full days of Roman-style events and contests. “The convention is chock full of activities from early in the morning until late at night,” said Jesuit Latin teacher Vanessa Jones. “It is like a Classics boot camp – full of Latin-y and Roman goodness!” This year, Atascocita High School, in the Houston suburb of Humble, Texas, played host to the annual convention of Latin-y activities.
The first day of Latin State featured the Academic Pentathlon, a rigorous written test challenging a scholar’s knowledge of Roman and Greek miscellany, followed by a dance. “I really felt good about my decathlon,” remarked attendee Chris Axmann, ’12. “I had buckled down and studied hard, and my hard work paid off when I won Magna Cum Laude.”
After the dance, Jesuit’s Latin students retired to their hotel to rest up for a full Saturday of competition. The second day kicked off with a series of specific subject tests covering such material as Latin mottoes and abbreviations, Roman culture, Latin grammar, and Empire history. After students took their tests, the entire convention entered a large seminar classroom for the academic certamen. Jesuit’s certamen team of juniors Chris Axmann, Michael Andro, and Clark Durham and sophomore Grady Thompson competed admirably against other Texas Latin students. “As a teacher, I love cheering on the students competing in the contests,” said Ms. Jones.
The day concluded with athletic competitions, ranging from traditional sports, like basketball and volleyball, to a catapult toss, in which students built Roman-style catapults to propel rocks across an asphalt battle field. The convention offered Jesuit Latin students the chance to meet some of the brightest and most creative students in the state. Ms. Jones added: “State conventions showed me that not only is Latin more than a language; it is a celebration and a resurrection of history, food, customs, culture, politics and literature that truly does affect our everyday lives.”
