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Paper 1. The National Committee for Latin and Greek

(328 words) 15 minutes

The National Committee for Latin and Greek was established in 1978 as a standing committee of the American Classical League, charged with “the initiation and coordination of efforts to promote the study of Latin and Greek on behalf of all cooperating classicl organizations by developing a variety of appropriate projects and activities.” (ACL Bylaws 8.8 [2016]) It receives support from ACL, from SCS, from CAMWS, and from other regional and state organizations, and welcomes as members all who support its work.

Crucially NCLG was one of the founding organizations of the Joint National Committee for Languages, the most important national advocacy organization for the language enterprise as a whole. As a legacy member we hold a seat on the JNCL Board of Directors. Through the annual Delegate Assembly and Language Advocacy Day JNCL staff educate delegates about trends in the world of America’s languages and about legislative priorities for support of language education. They coordinate meetings between delegates and their own legislators’ offices, and between delegates and appropriate officials in the executive branch and in other initiatives. The importance of having a seat at the table with advocates for other language organizations should not be overlooked.

As an example, the phrase “America’s languages” is drawn from a publication of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (2017), investigating the role of language in the life of the nation. JNCL—and thus NCLG—was an advocate for commissioning this study and wrote one of its reports.

Closer to home, that is, to advocacy for the Classics, NCLG funds book grants for teachers in elementary and middle schools; coordinates National Latin Teacher Recruitment Week and funds grants for related activities; and responds to requests for support of both endangered programs and those newly created. Other areas of emphasis are the promotion of the study of Greek, classics in the community college, and efforts to increase diversity among students of the classics.