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Strategic Priorities for the SCS Mission

The SCS board of directors has developed three strategic priorities for the organization. The priorities of advocacy, growth, and inclusion will function as principles according to which the organization will prioritize initiatives and activities in its various programmatic divisions (communications and outreach, education, professional matters, annual meeting program, and publications and research). The priorities themselves are included within an elaboration of SCS’s mission and purpose (see below), approved by the board of directors on January 2, 2020, after consultation with incoming board members. SCS will engage in new initiatives, and review and revise others in the light these priorities. Moreover, the organization will reevaluate these priorities on a regular basis and seek member feedback on how to implement and advance them. You can write to the Executive Director (helen.cullyer@nyu.edu) with feedback and suggestions. The text below is just an introduction. In the February newsletter, you can learn more about what each priority means for SCS and how our various divisions are already working and planning to advance them.

Current Mission Statement

The mission and purpose of the SCS is to “advance knowledge, understanding, and appreciation of the ancient Greek and Roman world and its enduring value.”

Elaboration of Current Mission Statement

The mission of the Society for Classical Studies is to promote interest in and informed discussion of the literature, history, and material culture of the ancient Greek, Roman, and larger Mediterranean worlds. The Society’s mission extends to the varied history of the reception of those elements among different communities from antiquity to the present and to comparison between ancient Mediterranean and other cultures. Crucial to this mission are (1) Advocacy for the field as a humanistic endeavor and for those who teach, research, and study it, formally or informally, at any level; (2) Growth in the numbers of all those who share an enthusiasm for Classics; (3) Inclusion of different perspectives representing the many communities in North America and around the world that are now engaged with scholarly and cultural reception of ancient Greece and Rome. Finally, in adopting these priorities it is the Society’s responsibility to oppose anyone who would exploit the histories and cultures of the ancient Mediterranean for purposes of hate and exclusion.



Photo Credits for January 2020 Newsletter

Photos from SCS Annual Meeting were taken by Erik Shell, and used with permission.

Licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0
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Reception