STATE UPDATES · Spring 2026 · Torch: U.S.
33
maryland
"Salvete amici!
This past winter, the MDJCL had two more in-person Certamen events! In December, we celebrated Saturnalia at the Calvert School by decorating cookies, making holiday cards for seniors, and answering some festive questions! Then, just one month later, the Gilman School hosted its own hiberna-themed Certamen, where we also tested our teachers’ knowledge with questions written by the state officers. I am happy to report that the majority of the teams remembered how to construct a passive periphrastic, but the surprise SOH-CAH-TOA question has a much lower success rate...
In addition to Certamen, we have held three more Instagram contests on @maryland_jcl (Roman cooking, 3D art, and 2D art) and published two more editions of the Maryland Torch! As for the spirit contest, the same two teams—the Bryn Mawr School and Easton High School—remain in the lead, but as they say after the penultimate score check, it's still anyone’s game!
Looking ahead, we will have an Open Certamen at the McLean School in early March, and then state convention at the Key School in late April. While at McLean, we will also vote on our state T-shirt design for 2026—how exciting!! See you after state convention! Cura ut valeas!"
louisiana
"Salvete from Louisiana!
This November, the LJCL hosted our annual Fall Forum, a state wide event for all JCLers, which was a major success!! We introduced a new competition: Impromptu Myth, where contestants are given a prompt on the spot to write an original myth in a 45 minute window. This year's prompt was 'Write a mythological origin story for Labubus.' The entries ranged from serious to very silly, but all of them captured the pure creativity of the LJCL. In addition to this, our Fall Forum included a 'human bingo' icebreaker, certamen on all levels, Impromptu art, and Ludi (potato sack race, obstacle course, tug-o-war, and a pool noodle freeze tag war). The state officers and SCLers are now working on planning our state convention which will be held March 20-22 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana."
By Edie Crow
By Bani Gourab