timelessness and diversity of the classics. Not only do modern innovations in the humanities, sciences, and everything in between continue to take their foundation in the work of ancient cultures, but the essence of these civilizations also continue to promote progress in society today. At the same time, we hoped that students would take their investigation of the classical civilizations to the next level by seeking a holistic understanding of the entire nexus of cultures in the greater Mediterranean region over centuries of history, which parallels modern globalization. The booklet was released in January at NJCL’s virtual Classicalia event, which united hundreds of participants for a day of fun activities and guest speakers (including Mayor Michelle Wu, Baroness Susan Greenfield, Dr. Anika Prather, and Lynn Sherr).
In their own celebration of this event, the national officers ran takeovers on the NJCL Instagram page. This included posting video explanations of NCW themes on the feed, fielding questions through polls and Q&A boxes, and posting more fun facts on the story.
Officers Talha Ali and Irene Calderon kick off their Instagram takeovers!
This year’s National Classics Week was a success, and a huge thank you goes to everyone who participated! Please email [email protected] or [email protected] with any questions.
NATIONAL CLASSICS WEEK RECAP · Summer 2022 · Torch: U.S.
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National Classics Week
National Classics Week
RECAP
BY ALEX CHOU
2021 - 2022 NJCL 1st Vice President
Did you know that the cultural practice of mummification, which involved dissecting corpses, helped Egyptians understand the different organs of the human body? Or that the first sedentary cities, which were established as a result of agriculture, correlated with a rise in polytheism? From April 18, 2022 to April 24, 2022, members of the National Junior Classical league celebrated National Classics Week, the annual exploration of ancient civilizations and their enduring impact throughout human history, by expanding their expertise on the classics with facts like these. Students in state and local chapters across the nation participated in themed activities and service projects with the intent of influencing positive change in their communities while promoting the study of ancient classical cultures and languages. Each day of the week-long event revolved around a specific theme -- a specific field of human innovation -- as detailed by the National Classics Week booklet: law, arts, medicine, education, agriculture, social science, and communication.
The National Classics Week packet can be found at bit.ly/2022ncw. During the late summer to early winter, the national officers worked diligently to devise a theme for the year, perform background research on the topic of their assigned day, and compile entries and sample activity ideas in this booklet. The theme “Ancient Influences in the Modern World” was chosen with the hope of highlighting both the