Torch: U.S. LXIX Summer 2020 | Page 13

VIRTUAL CONVENTION

Elizabeth Foster

NJCL Editor 2019-2020

While Spring Planning Meeting was supposed to occur in Orlando over the first weekend of April, NJCL Officers and NJCL Committee found themselves safely residing in their homesand communicating over video call on April 8th. At this point, we were still hoping for an in-person national convention on the campus of the University of Richmond. On May 8th, however, the 2020 NJCL Convention in Richmond, Virginia was officially canceled. As we adapt our plans to fit a virtual format, we invite you to attend the NJCL’s first virtual convention!

NJCL Officers and Committee on a video call for an alternative Spring Planning Meeting.

Photo: Dennis Webb

SPRING PLANNING MEETING

The NJCL Board and Committee are in the process of planning this year's virtual convention.

THIS DOCUMENT will frequently be updated with convention information and

THIS DOCUMENT will frequently be updated with the convention schedule.

Agon was conceived of 10 years ago by a JCLer named Jose Molina as his high school senior project. Jose loved Certamen and in particular the study of language, having embarked on a two-year independent study of ancient Greek with his teacher. More than anything, Agon seeks to inspire students to study Greek-related topics that are typically included in JCL academic testing: Hellenic History, Greek Literature, Classical Art, Greek Derivatives, and Greek Language. These subjects were once tangentially included in Certamen, but the overwhelming sentiment was that the scope of the material was too broad for students to manage. The creation of Agon would, hopefully, grant an exciting

engage in friendly

competition.

At the 2013 NJCL Convention at UNLV, an Agon exhibition was held on the night of pre-convention. The next year at Emory University, 27 teams signed up to play in the first Agon held at the NJCL Convention. Due to scheduling concerns, Agon has taken a hiatus over the past five years, but we are excited to pilot it once again at the 2020 convention. Before the spread of COVID-19, we were looking to host an Agon tournament for JCLers at convention in Richmond. We are now very excited to move that

tournament to an online format for the virtual 2020 NJCL Convention. Our ultimate goal, expressed originally by Jose 10 years ago, is to provide students with a platform to further enjoy the study of Hellenic civilization and Greek language. Information about registration will be forthcoming after June 1st, and we do hope that you will consider signing up to play in July!

ex animo,

David Jackson

NJCL Academic Contest Chair

AGON

outlet for students who studied catego-ries to express their knowledge and