Three or four sponsors have expressed some concerns over the fact that we've reduced testing to one single session before lunch. (The past few years, it has been two hours before lunch and then an additional two hours after lunch.) Reducing this to 2.5 hours means that the small number of students who wish to take all (or nearly all) of the exams may not have adequate time.

Why has this change been made?

(1) Cutting out the second testing session allows us to expand our other afternoon activities.

(2) Teachers hate to proctor exams -- especially in a gymnasium -- and getting them to follow through on their proctoring responsibilities is often a problem.

(3) One single morning test session makes things much easier on the contest office (i.e., Jim Long).

(4) The main reason -- four hours is just too long! According to Jim's stats, the average TJCLer takes just five tests each year, and 2.5 hours is more than enough time for this.

A couple of our Executive Board members feel that 2.5 hours should be the limit for everyone, but most of us agree that if the hard-core academic test takers really want to stay in the gym and continue testing through lunch, then we're not going to stand in their way. The Warrens have graciously volunteered to proctor this extended testing time period.

Students who choose to do this, of course, will do so at their own risk of missing lunch entirely. With the testing location just a stone's throw away (literally) from a couple of fast food restaurants, however, I don't expect anyone to go hungry.

The 2009 TJCL State Convention packet can now be downloaded in a single document:

2009 Convention Packet

We have decided not to offer track, field, and swimming events at the 2009 TJCL State Convention. Chariot racing and informal ludi athletic events, however, are still on the schedule.

As the person primarily in charge of organizing this convention, this was ultimately my decision, and I take full responsibility for it. The decision, however, was hardly a unilateral one. First, I conducted a survey of all TJCL sponsors, and Olympika was selected as the least important event at convention. Second, out of the 14 adults and students on the TJCL Executive Board, only 1 person voted in favor of keeping Olympika. (It was not, incidentally, the Olympika coordinator.) Third, this isn't exactly a new development. Ed Long, for example, was seriously considering letting the axe fall on Olympika when he was State Chair in the 1990s.

When TJCL had 1500-2000 students at convention each year during the 1980s and 1990s, there were a lot of adults to work all of the events, there was a need for a big spectator-friendly event, and there was plenty of money to cover the insurance costs. Last year, I don't think we even had 500 students at convention. Olympika just doesn't make sense any more.

We are well aware, of course, that not every student can compete (realistically) in academic testing and Certamen, and we're still offering a wide variety of activities to appeal to a wide variety of students. We want the convention to be a positive experience for all TJCL students, and I don't think this decision will jeopardize that at all.

I've posted the results of our initial membership drive. Many thanks to all of you who met the deadline!

Remember that you can always add more members as the year goes along. Just use the "Additional Members Form" in your membership confirmation packet.

For those of you who did not meet the deadline, it is not too late to join. (A late fee, however, is now in effect.) Please pay your dues by the end of December for your chapter to be eligible to attend the state convention.

The TJCL Constitution and By-Laws have been modified:

1. The President may be from the same chapter as the President whom he / she succeeds.
2. Candidates for President, Second Vice-President, and Parliamentarian must have attended at least one TJCL and one NJCL convention to be eligible to run for office.
3. The Secretary will be responsible for collecting community service reports from participating TJCL chapters.

The TJCL Executive Board has voted unanimously to make the Torch (the TJCL's official newsletter) strictly an online publication. An online Torch would have color and high-resolution photography, two things that would be much too expensive to reproduce in a printed hard copy sent out via traditional postal mail.

Of course, newsletters such as the Torch are relics from an era devoid of web pages, blogs, e-mail, cell phones, and digital cameras, and we could certainly discuss whether it is still really needed at all. Even in a high-tech age, however, I think that newsletters can still be informative and relevant.

Above all, it is important to note that the Torch is a student publication, and it is ultimately the responsibility of the appointed student Torch editor to make it all happen. Our current Torch editor is Hannah Lozano from Smyrna High School. She would like to publicize as many local TJCL chapters as possible, so please send articles and photographs her way.

When should the TJCL State Convention be scheduled?

Out of 40 responses:

November - 2
February - 3
March - 7
Early April - 10
Mid-April - 5
Late April - 13

Even though the last survey revealed a considerable amount of frustration about the usual springtime scheduling conflicts, this survey -- rather ironically -- suggests that very few sponsors would support a major change.

Personally, I would be willing to give November a shot. It's a relatively slow time of the school year, and there would be virtually no chance of severe weather (of either the winter or springtime variety). One of the biggest JCL states, Virginia, holds their state convention in November, and the event is so popular that they literally have to turn people away. With a mere 5% of our sponsors supporting this idea, though, it's probably not going to fly.

Incidentally, we are going to attempt to schedule the 2010 convention in Knoxville or Gatlinburg and the 2011 convention in Nashville. I would like to have the next year's convention scheduled by t

We had a total of 27 responses. Thanks to all of those who participated!

1. The primary purpose of the TJCL State Convention should be:

To promote Latin and build enthusiasm for classical studies -- 93%

(No other choice received more than one vote.)

2. Which factors have contributed to the decline in convention attendance over the years?

All factors received votes. The only three NOT to receive votes in the double digits were the reverse bandwagon effect, inclement weather conditions, and lack of annual rotation.

3. What has been the greatest factor contributing to the decline in convention attendance over the years?

The top four answers:

Expenses -- 26%
Scheduling conflicts -- 22%
Poor planning / organization on the part of the TJCL -- 19%
Too much paperwork / stress for sponsors -- 15%

4. Which event is most important to the quality / success of the convention?

Academic Testing -- 78%
Spirit Contest -- 7%

(No other choice received more than one vote.)

5. Which event is least important to the quality / success of the convention?

The top four answers:

Olympika -- 22%
Spirit Contest -- 19%
Publicity -- 15%
Skits -- 15%

Commentary:

(1) Spirit is certainly not one of my personal favorites, but it does give the students the opportunity to burn off some energy / excitement, it costs the TJCL virtually nothing to administer, and the judging can be easily delegated to student officers. I do think, however, that one single spirit contest is sufficient.

(2) The publicity contest may not matter to the students, but I think publicity itself is extremely important in respect to building and maintaining viable Latin programs. This is something the late Barbara Hardin tried to get me to realize when I first started teaching. It took a couple of years to sink in, but it finally did.

(3) I'm a little surprised that skits received so many votes. Perhaps because teachers often have to put in long hours helping their students coordinate everything? Perhaps because sitting through ten (mostly dreadful) skits as a judge can be a painful experience? At any rate, the skits do allow students -- many of whom may not excel in academic testing or Certamen -- to work cooperatively towards a common goal, and they can be supervised / judged by just a couple of adults. Therefore, I don't expect them to go away anytime soon.

(4) Last but not least -- Olympika. Unlike spirit, publicity, and skits, this is an administrative nightmare. Start dusting off your Theodosius jokes.

A few remarks about membership:

1. TJCL student dues have increased to $5.00 per student.
2. To avoid a late fee, please send in your membership by November 11, 2008.
3. For your chapter to be eligible to attend the state convention, please send in your membership by January 1, 2009.
4. Remember that you can always add additional members later in the year.

Hello everybody! I am your new webmaster, Zach Bielak. The State Chair has created a new blog that has updated and important information. This will not replace e-mail or the existing TJCL website, but it will allow the Chair to post announcements and documents in a centralized, easy-to-access location. It is located at:
http://faculty.musowls.org/tjcl

Personally, I am not interested in pursuing this, especially with fuel prices so high.

However, Shannon Sloan (plantmistress@comcast.net) has volunteered to be the unofficial coordinator for any Tennessee schools interested in competing.


Having done quite a bit of brain storming over the past two days, I have decided to propose a new, and I think very exciting, certamen tournament: The Champion's League of Certamen. The idea is based off of the Champion's League of European soccer in which the best two club teams from each country's league compete in a championship tournament.
I would like to invite the two best school JCL teams from each state on each level of play (Novice, Intermediate, and Advanced) to compete in a national tournament to be held in Gainesville FL in June 2009.

The basic format / rules for the tournament will be as follows:

1. Teams may be comprised only of members from a local JCL chapter (no state teams or regional teams may compete)
2. Alternates are permitted provided that everyone goes to the same school.
3. The levels of play are Novice (Latin 1/2 and 1), Intermediate (Latin II), and Advanced (Latin III and above).
4. If any of the top two teams on each level, as determined by the state's JCL convention, are not able or willing to participate then the state may send replacement teams (preferably the 3rd and then 4th place teams)

David Jackson
Oak Hall School
Gainesville FL

The 2009 TJCL State Convention will be Friday, April 24 and Saturday, April 25 on the campus of Memphis University School. The school's administration, long-committed to the pursuit of classical studies, has generously agreed to cancel classes to accommodate the TJCL.

MUS sits on a beautiful 94-acre campus, just off 1-240 in East Memphis. Within easy walking distance of the school are at least a half a dozen restaurants.

This new TJCL State Chair Blog is not intended to replace the existing TJCL home page, but it will provide a means of efficient supplemental communication.

Stephanie and I are looking forward to serving the TJCL, and we hope to achieve the following objectives in office:

1. Improve communication, organization, and efficiency of TJCL operations.
2. Adhere to the core purpose of the TJCL and the TJCL State Convention (i.e., to promote Latin and generate enthusiasm for classical studies).
3. (Most importantly) Ensure that TJCL participation is as painless for teachers as possible.

All the convention forms are now posted! Please check the "Sponsor's Resources" section to view them. Other updates include: revising the "TJCL Convention" section, re-creating the sub menus, and archiving all the old forms under the "Forms" section as links.
Also, please welcome our new West TN sponsor, Mrs. Abigail Braddock from Houston High School! As convention draws closer, make sure to check the due dates-- you wouldn't want to miss any of these! Thanks for your cooperation, and feel free to send me an email if you have any concerns with the website!

Hello! Just to let everyone know, we should have all the 2008 forms up soon. We now have a TJCL Calendar! You can access it by clicking on the link! All deadlines for the state convention will be posted on there. For those of you who do not already know, the convention will be April 10-12 at Austin Peay University! More information on this will be posted within the next few weeks. Please contact us if you need any information before then.