Robert Holschuh-Simmons, Monmouth College
College and university professors often see little incentive in establishing and maintaining relationships with their colleagues in the K-12 ranks. For many, that approach is functional: in the higher education system, rewards are typically only in place first for research and teaching, and secondly for service at one’s institution or to higher-education-specific organizations. However, college professors’ inattention to their K-12 colleagues contributes to the diminishment of the field at all levels, and it overlooks opportunities that can be not just personally satisfying, but professionally beneficial. This talk will share one college professor’s perspectives on and experiences with cultivating relationships with teachers at the K-12 level around his area, state, and nation, and the benefits he has seen both for himself and (he hopes) for his K-12 peers as a result of these relationships. Such associations help build layers of protection against challenges to programs at all levels; they offer creative professional possibilities; they help high school students understand the nature and expectations of college Classics programs, and reinforce the appeal of Classics at that level and their own; and they make the professional journey feel more broadly supportive and satisfying. Building professionally advantageous relationships with K-12 teachers starts with being intentional about making contact with them on comfortable terms. Sending emails to local teachers (if there are any) to establish initial lines of communication is a first step. Most states, and some metropolitan areas, also have a Classics association, which is generally populated predominantly by K-12 teachers. Joining it, and going to its main meetings, can also aid in establishing relationships. Attending one’s state’s Junior Classical League annual meeting, and perhaps offering content at it, can provide similar contact and trust-building opportunities. Joining ACL provides regular access to what evolving priorities are for K-12 teachers nationwide, and attending the organization’s annual meeting, if feasible, provides a crash course on trends in the field, with abundant interpreters, in the form of the teachers in attendance. From all of these potential encounters, college/university faculty can establish relationships with K-12 peers that can be not just mutually fruitful, but beneficial in, and for, the field. Plenty of collaborations—such as officer positions with the organizations noted above, coordination of tutoring between college and K-12 students, shared public demonstrations, or joint grants—can be of the sort that many colleges/universities will “count” for research and/or service. K-12 teachers knowing college/university faculty makes them more likely to recommend the faculty’s school to their students. Such teachers bringing to their students’ minds a broader world of Classics also makes it more likely that those students will be more engaged in their current classes, will encourage their friends to sign up, and will choose to continue to study Classics in college. And teachers at both levels can rally behind one another in times of challenge to programs. The relationships themselves, and the broadening of one’s base of colleagues in the field, can be reward enough, but professional benefits following from those relationships can also be considerable.