Clarksville Montgomery County School System Latin Students are Winners at National Convention

Montgomery County, TN – When asked what constitutes a fun summer, most teenagers would include joys like pools, beaches, sleep, and most of all, not having to study for school. For a select few, however, eighteen hours of study per week sounds pretty exciting.

These brave souls form the Junior Classical League (JCL), an organization dedicated to the study of the classics – Latin as well as ancient Greek and Roman culture.

Several local high school students met three days a week this summer in preparation for the annual national JCL convention and competition, which lasted from July 27th to August 1st at Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas.

Roughly 1,300 students were in attendance to flex their scholarly, artistic, and normal muscles in competitive testing, art, and Olympika (assorted athletic contests). Five Clarksville schools were represented by a total of 24 delegates.

For 13 of these students, their hard work and diligence paid off; many placed in the top 10 on various events. In testing, students are placed against others in their level of Latin, while for art and Olympika, they are placed against others in their grade level.

The following students earned a spot in the top 10 in the nation:

From Clarksville High School:

• Clara Grigsby (12^th grade) was 6^th in Computer-Enhanced Photography.
• Justin Ladd (12^th grade) was 1^st in the Marathon and 3^rd in the 800 Meter.
• Lauren Snapp (12^th grade) was 2^nd in Computer-Enhanced Photography, 4^th in Watercolor, and 7^th in Traditional Photography.

From Northeast High School:

• Riley Miller (Latin 3) was 1^st in Greek History.

From Rossview High School:

• Heston Friedland (Latin 4) was 5^th in Greek History and 6^th in Roman Life.
• Alexander Kee (Latin 4) was 1^st in Advanced Latin Grammar and 4^th in Vocabulary.
• Sarah Lee (Latin 1) was 3^rd in Roman History, Greek History, and Greek Life & Literature as well as 6^th in Latin Literature.
• Allie Levy (9^th grade) was 5^th in Charcoal, 8^th in Acrylics/Oils, and 9^th in Black Ink.
• Asa Ruiz (Latin 1) was 9^th in Ancient Geography.
• Ian Slamen (Latin 3) was 2^nd in Ancient Geography, 3^rd in Greek History, 5^th in Greek Life & Literature, and 8^th in Roman History.
• Noah Stafford (Latin 1) was 2^nd in Latin Literature, 5^th in Greek History, and 7^th in both Ancient Geography and Roman Life.
• Hannah Vandenbroek (Latin 1) was 9^th in Greek History.

In addition to placing first in their Latin levels on their respective tests, Kee and Miller earned Best of Show honors for having the highest scores regardless of Latin level. They were literally the best in the country! Kee also earned a scholarship for his hard work over the past four years.

The state of Tennessee was represented in Latin 1 quiz bowl by four Rossview students (Lee, Ruiz, Stafford, and Brandon Zeedar), who made it to the semifinals. All of Clarksville’s JCL delegates are to be lauded for their dedication, perseverance, and passion for learning and pushing themselves.