National Junior Classical League

National Junior Classical League

NJCL official emblem[1]
Abbreviation	National JCL, NJCL[2]
Formation	1936[2]
Type	Educational, service
Legal status	Non-profit
Purpose	Classical studies
Headquarters	Miami University 422 Wells Mill Drive Oxford, Ohio 45056
Location	United States
Coordinates	39°30′17.75″N 84°44′59.50″W / 39.5049306°N 84.7498611°W / 39.5049306; -84.7498611
Region served	Worldwide
Membership	45,771[3]
President 1st Vice-President 2nd Vice-President Comm. Coord. Parliamentarian Historian Editor Committee Chair	Ruiqi He Maya Nandakumar Narayan Sundararajan Aliyah Quereshi Ashley Blazek Sarah Christian Amol Punjabi Ms. Amy Elifrits
Parent organization	American Classical League
Affiliations	National Senior Classical League
Website	njcl.org

The National Junior Classical League (National JCL or NJCL) is a youth organization of secondary school students sponsored by the American Classical League (ACL).^[2][4] Founded in 1936,^[4] the NJCL comprises more than 1,000 Latin, Greek and Classical chapters in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom,^[4][5] and with over 45,000 members,^[3] is the largest Classical organization in the world today.^[4] Its mission: "to encourage an interest in and an appreciation of the language, literature and culture of ancient Greece and Rome and to impart an understanding of the debt of our own culture to that of classical antiquity."^[1] The current NJCL Committee Chair is Ms. Amy Elifrits of West Chester, Ohio, a teacher of Latin at Lakota East High School (Liberty Township, Ohio).^[6]

NJCL official colors are Roman purple and gold.          ^[1]

History

The idea of creating a junior organization to the American Classical League was first proposed in 1927 at the organization's annual meeting. A committee was appointed to study the matter, but it decided two years later that it wouldn't be worth pursuing at the time. In 1936, a pin was made and lifetime membership cost thirty cents, as it was decided to pursue the creation of a junior organization. The Junior Classical League was announced in November of 1936 in Classical Outlook, with headquarters being established at New York University.^[7]

Today, chapters exist in the United States, Canada, and Australia and has over 50,000 members.^[8]

Philosophy

The official philosophy of the National Junior Classical League is as follows:^[8]

We believe that through the National Junior Classical League:

• We will gain an active appreciation and understanding of the civilizations of ancient Greece and Rome, thereby better enabling us as individuals to interpret and appraise our world today.
• We have a sound structure, which provides a sound basis for expansion of our horizons and perspectives, intellectually, socially, and aesthetically.
• We have a viable organization, which can effectively create in others a sense of awareness, interest, and appreciation as far as the value of the Classics is concerned.

NJCL Song

NJCL Song (The Purple and Gold)^[9]
Written by Dave Clements, Max Spires and Mrs. R.G. Frazier
Revised by Mrs. B.H. Norveson

Seeking the best, the highest our goal
Working for greatness through glories of old.

Searching the realms of the golden past,
We follow the Classics' truths that last

In knowledge, truth, and fellowship, we're growing everyday [sic]
The friendly hand of J.C.L. aids in every way.

In Rome's proud steps we're marching on,
With every true colleague,

And forever we'll hold to the Purple and Gold,
Of the Junior Classical League.

NJCL Creed

NJCL Creed^[2][10]
Written by Dorothy Park Latta

We the members of the Junior Classical League, covenant to hand on the torch of classical civilization in the modern world.

We believe an acquaintance with the civilizations of Greece and Rome will help us understand and appraise this world of today,

Which is indebted to the ancient civilization in its government and laws, literature, language and arts.

We affirm the JCL experience develops responsibility, fosters brotherhood, promotes enthusiasm, encourages competition, inspires dedication and enriches our total growth.

National Convention

The NJCL hosts a week-long national convention annually at a college campus in late July or early August, where 1200–1500 students compete in academic tests, graphic and creative arts competitions, and meet many classics students from around the country.^[4][5][11]

Other components of the convention in which students may participate include Certamen, seminars commonly known as Colloquia, and Ludi (literally "games"—various athletic and recreational events). A theme for the following year's convention is chosen by the incoming president each year.^[11]

Most state-level NJCL chapters hold their own annual conventions at locations central to their attendees, where schools compete in varied events. These events are divided into academic levels for scoring purposes; participation can be countywide, regional, or even statewide. Awards are given out to schools based on sweepstakes points, earned by placing high in competitive events.^[5][12]

A popular event is the talent show, known as That's Entertainment!, always held on the night before the final farewell dance. It consists of skits put on by the NSCL between the individual acts, and since around 1985, a final surprise performance from a group of three mysterious men in suits and sunglasses, called the Racketeers (for the matching red tennis racket bags they wear on their heads), who walk on stage, perform a silent dance routine, and walk off.

Locations and themes

The National Convention has been held at many sites since 1954, usually in late July or early August.^[13][14]

Year	Number	Site	Theme
2015	LXII (62nd Annual)	Trinity University San Antonio, Texas	"Tu ne cede malis, sed contra audentior ito" (Yield not to misfortunes, but advance all the more boldly against them.) – Vergil
2014	LXI (61st Annual)	Emory University Atlanta, Georgia	"Omnium enim rerum principia parva sunt" (For the beginnings of all things are small.) – Cicero
2013	LX (60th Annual)	University of Nevada, Las Vegas Las Vegas, Nevada	"Quid sit futurum cras, fuge quaerere: et quem fors dierum cumque dabit, lucro appone." (Cease to inquire what the future has in store, and take as a gift whatever the day brings forth.) – Horace
2012	LIX (59th Annual)	Wake Forest University Winston-Salem, North Carolina	"Dimidium facti qui coepit habet" (He who has begun has half the deed done.) – Horace, Epistulae I.40
2011	LVIII (58th Annual)	Eastern Kentucky University Richmond, Kentucky	"Bene legere saecla vincere." ("To read well is to conquer the ages.") – Isaac Flagg, 19th Century Classicist
2010	LVII (57th Annual)	North Dakota State University Fargo, North Dakota	"Non est ad astra mollis e terris via." ("There is no easy way from the earth to the stars.") – Seneca
2009	LVI (56th Annual)	University of California, Davis Davis, California	"Fortuna nobis vi animi tantum frenabitur." ("The level of our success will be limited only by our imagination.") – Aesop
2008	LV (55th Annual)	Miami University Oxford, Ohio	"Non nobis solum nati sumus." ("We are not born for ourselves alone.") – Cicero, De Officiis
2007	LIV (54th Annual)	University of Tennessee Knoxville, Tennessee	"Carpe diem, quam minimum credula postero." ("Seize the day, trusting as little as possible in tomorrow.") – Horace, Ode I-XI
2006	LIII (53rd Annual)	Indiana University Bloomington, Indiana	"Amicitiae nostrae memoriam spero sempiternam fore." ("I hope that the memory of our friendship will be everlasting.") – Cicero
2005	LII (52nd Annual)	University of Missouri Columbia, Missouri	"Nil sine magno labore." ("Nothing without great labor.") – Unattributed
2004	LI (51st Annual)	University of Richmond Richmond, Virginia	"Facta non verba." ("Deeds not words.") – Unattributed
2003	L (50th Annual)	Trinity University San Antonio, Texas	"Natura inest in mentibus nostris insatiabilis quaedam cupiditas veri videndi." ("Nature has planted in our minds an insatiable longing to see the truth.") – Cicero
2002	XLIX (49th Annual)	University of Kentucky Lexington, Kentucky	"Magnos homines virtute metimur, non fortuna." ("We measure great men by their virtue, not their fortune.") – Cornelius Nepos, Eumenes I
2001	XLVIII (48th Annual)	Tulane University New Orleans, Louisiana	"Vultus ac frons animi ianua." ("The face and its expression are the door of the soul.") – Quintus Cicero, Commentariolum Petitionis XI.44
2000	XLVII (47th Annual)	University of Oklahoma Norman, Oklahoma	"Faber est suae quisque fortunae." ("Each one is the architect of his own fate.") – Appius Claudius Caecus
1999	XLVI (46th Annual)	Florida State University Tallahassee, Florida	"Audentior ito qua tua te fortuna sinet." ("Continue to go more boldly where your fortune will allow you.") – Virgil
1998	XLV (45th Annual)	University of Massachusetts Amherst Amherst, Massachusetts	"Patria est communis omnium parens" ("Our native land is the common parent of us all.") – Cicero
1997	XLIV (44th Annual)	North Dakota State University Fargo, North Dakota	"Aspirat primo fortuna labori." ("Fortune smiles upon our first effort.") – Virgil
1996	XLIII (43rd Annual)	Indiana University Bloomington, Indiana	"Nobilitas sola est atque unica virtus." ("Virtue is the true and only nobility.") – Unattributed
1995	XLII (42nd Annual)	University of Kansas Lawrence, Kansas	"Aut viam inveniam aut faciam." ("Either I shall find a way or I shall make one.") – Hannibal
1994	XLI (41st Annual)	University of Tennessee Knoxville, Tennessee	"Occasionem oblatam tenete." ("Seize an opportunity when it presents itself.") – Cicero, Philippicae
1993	XL (40th Annual)	Miami University Oxford, Ohio	"Nullius boni sine socio iucunda possessio est." ("No good thing is pleasing without friends to share it.") – Seneca, Epistulae morales ad Lucilium
1992	XXXIX (39th Annual)	San Diego State University San Diego, California	"Mens sana in corpore sano" ("A sound mind in a sound body") – Juvenal, Satire X
1991	XXXVIII (38th Annual)	Emory University Atlanta, Georgia	"Cura mihi futuri." ("My concern is for the future.") – Ovid, Metamorphoses XIII.363
1990	XXXVII (37th Annual)	University of North Texas Denton, Texas	"Forsan et haec olim meminisse iuvabit." ("Perhaps one day it will be pleasing to remember these things.") – Virgil, Aeneid I.203
1989	XXXVI (36th Annual)	Indiana University of Pennsylvania Indiana, Pennsylvania	"Unity in Diversity"
1988	XXXV (35th Annual)	University of Colorado Boulder, Colorado	"Amicitia" (Cicero's "in friendship we find nothing false or insincere; everything is straightforward and springs from the heart")
1987	XXXIV (34th Annual)	Stetson University DeLand, Florida	"Nobilitas sola est atque unica virtus." ("Virtue is the one and only true nobility.") – Juvenal
1986	XXXIII (33rd Annual)	Indiana University Bloomington, Indiana	"Aurea prima sata est aetas, quae sponte sua, fidem rectumque colebat." ("In the beginning was the Golden Age, when men of their own accord maintained good faith and did what was right.") – Ovid, Metamorphoses
1985	XXXII (32nd Annual)	University of New Hampshire Durham, New Hampshire	"Omnis ars naturae imitatio est." ("All art is an imitation of nature.") – Seneca, Epistulae morales
1984	XXXI (31st Annual)	University of Richmond Richmond, Virginia	"Caelum certe patet, ibimus illi." ("Surely the sky lies open, we will go that way.") – Ovid, Metamorphoses
1983	XXX (30th Annual)	University of Rochester Rochester, New York	"Qui mare tenet, eum necesse est rerum potiri." ("He who commands the sea has a command of everything.") – Cicero, Ad Atticum
1982	XXIX (29th Annual)	University of Oklahoma Norman, Oklahoma	"Auro quaeque ianua panditur." ("A golden key opens any gate.")
1981	XXVIII (28th Annual)	Miami University Oxford, Ohio	"Mihi curae futura." ("My care is for the future.") – Ovid, Metamorphoses
1980	XXVII (27th Annual)	University of Tennessee Knoxville, Tennessee	"Nullum saeculum magnis ingeniis clausum est." ("To great talents no era is closed.") – Seneca, Epistulae morales
1979	XXVI (26th Annual)	Michigan State University East Lansing, Michigan	"Bene cogitata si excidunt non occidunt." ("Good thoughts, even if they are forgotten, do not perish.") – Publilius Syrus
1978	XXV (25th Annual)	North Texas State University Denton, Texas	"Mens invicta manet." ("The mind remains unconquered.")
1977	XXIV (24th Annual)	Florida State University Tallahassee, Florida	"As runners we pass on the torch of life."
1976	XXIII (23rd Annual)	University of Rochester Rochester, New York	"Not to know what happened before you were born is to be forever a child."
1975	XXII (22nd Annual)	Ball State University Muncie, Indiana	"Forsan et haec olim meminisse iuvabit." ("Perhaps one day it will be pleasing to remember these things.") – Virgil, Aeneid
1974	XXI (21st Annual)	University of New Hampshire Durham, New Hampshire	"Fortiter, fideliter, feliciter" ("Boldly, faithfully, happily")
1973	XX (20th Annual)	Claremont Colleges Claremont, California	"Unity in diversity"
1972	XIX (19th Annual)	Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Blacksburg, Virginia	"Pax in terra" ("Peace on Earth")
1971	XVIII (18th Annual)	University of Oklahoma Norman, Oklahoma	n/a
1970	XVII (17th Annual)	Ohio University Athens, Ohio	n/a
1969	XVI (16th Annual)	Tulane University & Loyola University New Orleans, Louisiana	"Una stella fata nostra coniungit." ("One star connects our fates.")
1968	XV (15th Annual)	Michigan State University East Lansing, Michigan	"Otium cum dignitate" ("Leisure with dignity") – Cicero
1967	XIV (14th Annual)	University of Arizona Tucson, Arizona	n/a
1966	XIII (13th Annual)	Western Kentucky State College Bowling Green, Kentucky	"Why JCL?"
1965	XII (12th Annual)	University of Southern California Los Angeles, California	n/a
1964	XI (11th Annual)	University of Illinois Ubana–Champaign, Illinois	n/a
1963	X (10th Annual)	University of Kansas Lawrence, Kansas	n/a
1962	IX (9th Annual)	Montana State College Bozeman, Montana	n/a
1961	VIII (8th Annual)	Indiana University Bloomington, Indiana	"Facta non verba" ("Deeds not words")
1960	VII (7th Annual)	University of New Mexico Albuquerque, New Mexico	n/a
1959	VI (6th Annual)	St. Olaf College Northfield, Minnesota	n/a
1958	V (5th Annual)	University of Michigan Ann Arbor, Michigan	n/a
1957	IV (4th Annual)	Colorado College Colorado Springs, Colorado	n/a
1956	III (3rd Annual)	Miami University Oxford, Ohio	n/a
1955	II (2nd Annual)	Iowa State Teachers College Cedar Falls, Iowa	n/a
1954	I (1st Annual)	Incarnate Word High School San Antonio, Texas	n/a

Activities

Certamen

Certamen is a quiz bowl game with questions about Roman history, life, and literature, and Latin vocabulary, grammar, derivatives, and use in English.^[5][11]

Academic contests

There are sixteen written tests that JClers may compete in at National Convention.^[11]

These tests include grammar and reading comprehension by level, (i.e. Level 1 Latin, Level 2, Advanced (3 and up)). For the fourteen other tests, all take the same test but are ranked by level. These tests are Latin Vocabulary, Latin Derivatives, Latin Literature, Roman History, Ancient Geography, Roman Private Life, Mythology, Greek Life and Literature, Hellenic History, Mottoes (and Abbreviations/Quotations), Greek Derivatives, Classical Art, Academic Heptathlon, and Academic Decathlon. Classical Art and Academic Decathlon are taken separate from other tests, due to the relative specialization and difficulty.

Graphic arts

JCL delegates can submit artwork in various categories for contest judging.^[11]

Creative arts

Creative Arts at National Convention include Sight Latin Reading, Costume Contest, Latin and English Oratory, and Dramatic Interpretation.^[11]

Olympika

Olympika are athletic events at National Convention. There are Olympika in swimming, track & field, and marathon.^[11]

Ludi

Ludi are events for which sweepstakes points are not awarded. There are Ludi in chess, soccer, ultimate frisbee, basketball, and volleyball which will replace kickball starting with the 2013 convention.^[11]

National officers

At each National Convention, JCL delegates elect student officers. Each state may only field one candidate each year, and never for a position whose incumbent is from the same state. The offices are President, 1st Vice President, 2nd Vice President, Communications Coordinator, Parliamentarian, Historian, and Editor. Voting is typically conducted by school in each state, with delegates casting two votes (for or abstention), with the exception of a delegation of only one JCLer, in which case only one vote is allowed.

During the 2002-2003 school year, current Boston City Councilor Michelle Wu was the NJCL President.^[15]

Listed below are the current NJCL Officers (2014–15).

Office	Officer	Hometown
President	Ruiqi He[16]	San Antonio, Texas
1st Vice-President	Maya Nandakumar[17]	San Jose, California
2nd Vice-President	Narayan Sundararajan[18]	Shaker Heights, Ohio
Communications Coordinator	Aliyah Quereshi[19]	Brookfield, Wisconsin
Parliamentarian	Ashley Blazek[20]	Fargo, North Dakota
Historian	Sarah Christian[21]	Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Editor	Amol Punjabi[22]	Boston, Massachusetts

State chapters

As of 2010, forty-seven U.S. states, the District of Columbia, three Canadian provinces, and the United Kingdom each maintain a state (or state-level) chapter of the NJCL; the current total number is 51 as Washington state and British Columbia share a chapter.^[3] Many chapters hold their own annual State Convention in addition to the National Convention.^[5][12]

Alabama JCL Alaska JCL Arizona JCL Arkansas JCL California JCL Colorado JCL Connecticut JCL Delaware JCL District of Columbia JCL Florida JCL Georgia JCL Hawaii JCL Illinois JCL Indiana JCL

Iowa JCL Kansas JCL Kentucky JCL Louisiana JCL Maine JCL Maryland JCL Massachusetts JCL Michigan JCL Minnesota JCL Mississippi JCL Missouri JCL Nebraska JCL Nevada JCL

New Hampshire JCL New Jersey JCL New Mexico JCL New York JCL North Carolina JCL North Dakota Ohio JCL Oklahoma JCL Ontario JCL Oregon JCL Pennsylvania JCL Quebec JCL Rhode Island JCL

South Carolina JCL South Dakota JCL Tennessee JCL Texas State JCL United Kingdom JCL Utah JCL Vermont JCL Virginia JCL Washington / British Columbia JCL West Virginia JCL Wisconsin JCL Wyoming JCL

Publications

Torch: U.S. is the NJCL's official publication, which details the events of the organization, reports scores, and issues stories. Published four times a year, the only issue sent to all convention attendees (including non-subscribers) is the fall issue, shortly after convention.

Until October 2007, the NJCL also published JCL Highlights in months when the Torch: U.S. was not published. JCL Highlights publicized administrative details about the League, including details about applying for JCL scholarships, information about the upcoming Convention, and requests for information from NJCL officers and national committee members. According to the Fall 2007 Torch: U.S., the National Committee decided at the October 2007 Fall Planning Meeting to eliminate the JCL Highlights in favor of online distribution of the same information.

See also

• National Senior Classical League (NSCL) – The college-level affiliate of NJCL
• Living Latin – A movement dedicated to promoting spoken Latin
• Ontario Student Classics Conference – An annual conference begun in 1968 which has roots in the National Junior Classical League.

References

External links

• Official website
• American Classical League
• National Senior Classical League
• National Latin Exam