Spring 2025 · Torch: U.S. · A REFLECTION ON THE JCL
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he was like ‘got it’.” Little may be the president of a giant organization, but many people forget that he was also a teacher. He loves the Classics, but even more so, he loves spreading the Classics to everybody. He spoke a lot about why the Classics should be accessible, and even shared an amazing story about a deaf student that found his own place in the Classics community (in Sicily nonetheless), “The one time we had a deaf student who traveled with us- he was in my AP class, wonderful kid, y’know he'd come to convention, done all kinds of things, he had his interpreter with him. And so, we're in Italy and y’know- all of us go out of this restaurant, and there's this group of Italian deaf students, and they were signing. Right away, I kinda looked at him and asked him if he understood. He said a little bit, he understood the letters signed. And he talked to them for like half an hour, and all of his friends were letting him stand there and enjoy the experience. I saw his mom at a parent teacher conference, and she said he talked to him nonstop.”
It’s so incredibly important to be able to connect with people and Classics is a great way of doing it. They were speaking in Italian, but the AP student would have never had the opportunity to go on this trip and meet the students without the Classics. Little truly cares about the Classics and its opportunities that it provides. Because of teachers like Little, I am able to be involved with the Classics on such a deep level.
Eventually, sophomore year snuck up on me, and I was in a similar position as last year. Like freshman year, I was still nervous to go to state convention, but at the same time, I was excited. If I could have a decent time at a place hours away from my house with people I had never met before, maybe this time could be even better.
In fact, Latin in general had begun to pique my interest. While I hated grammar (I still
do), I loved reading real, authentic Latin texts. Before this year, we had read from a textbook, but now, it was the real deal. These people wrote this thousands of years ago, and I was lucky enough to read it.
I arrived to state convention, and everything changed. This was NOT like last year. I realized how much COVID had impacted every single thing people did. Suddenly, spirit, competitions, and colloquias (mini lessons from professors and other cool people) were all at the forefront of my mind.
Instead of thinking, Hey! This isn’t too bad!, I now thought, Hey! This is pretty awesome!. In fact, I actually made a bunch of friends and connections within the Ohio JCL. Coming home from convention, I was super excited. I realized that not only is Classics intriguing, but the community is equally as exciting and amicable.
Without knowing it, I was hooked. Before long, I became incredibly involved. At the end of sophomore year, I went to National Convention at Emory University. Before I had gone, I thought it would be like Ohio JCL, just a bit bigger. I was super wrong. My first day at Emory, I realized what I had gotten myself into. There were almost 4,000 kids just like me and we spent an entire week learning about the classics, playing sports, and competing with each other. At this point, I was desperate to become involved with my state in any way possible.
I ended up running for Ohio JCL Historian, a position in which I could combine two of my biggest interests at the moment: Classics and Photography. I ended up winning, and spent my Junior year working with an executive board of students. All of these kids lived in Ohio and wanted to spread their love for the Classics. It was, and still is, one of the best times I’ve had with a group of people. We all worked together to put together the 2022-2023 Ohio JCL Convention, and it was a HUGE success. We had more than 400 students attend!
Basketball Arena in front of around 5,000 people. Walking onto the stage, the arena was silent. I can’t begin to tell you how incredibly nervous I was. I mean, my palms were sweaty, and I was beginning to feel lightheaded— and that’s not the half of it. Looking at the crowd, I took a deep breath and spoke,
“Salvete Omnes!”
As soon as I started to speak, I realized how far I had made it. Thousands of people were here to watch me.
My heart beat started to slow down and I went into a zone of reminiscence and happiness. This was it. I was here. Before I knew it, the arena erupted into a mass of cheers and applause. It was over, and all I needed to do was to wait. I honestly was not sure that I was going to win my candidacy, and although my nerves for the speech were over, my nerves for the election were not. The next day I spent pacing around the university. Was I going to win? If so, what do I do? If I don’t, what happens now?
Finally, it was the day. I sat down in my seat and the day's General Assembly started. After making a few announcements, they started to read out the election results. It was time for the NJCL Historian results. I held my breath in anticipation for what felt like hours. Finally, they walked up to the podium and announced the results.
I couldn’t believe it. Here was this organization with more than 23,000 students, and I would help run it. I truly made it to the highest point I could.
The last few days of NJCL were a blur. People from everywhere in the country and beyond were congratulating me. I didn’t even know these people, yet somehow, they knew me.
Speaking to Felix Chen, the NJCL Editor, it’s easy to see why the JCL community is so ecstatically friendly. Felix is an incredibly outstanding guy who understands the real reason why so many people love the JCL. While speaking, we landed on a specific term: A method of connection. The Classics was a method of connection into lasting friendships and beliefs. Felix put into words my feelings. Yes, I loved Latin, but that wasn’t quite it. I had always thought that Latin and Greek were super interesting, but it wasn’t till I joined the JCL that I truly loved the Classics. I loved Classics because of the people involved with it. I loved Classics because of Certamen, and arts contests, and Agora (a marketplace), and sports, and most of all, the little traditions that had developed. Traditions such as JCL’s Got Talent, a yearly talent show that exhibits awesome tricks and performances, including a national officer sketch. Traditions such as oohing and ahhing simple prizes for spirit. Traditions such as cheering for the small states in spirit since they aren’t big enough to make a huge amount of noise.
In my opinion, this pretty much sums up the JCL— a group of supportive individuals who truly care about one another as much as they care about the Classics. That's why so many people love the JCL. That’s why I love the JCL.
Philip speaking with JCLers at the Candidate Open Forum in 2024.