Editor’s Note: Student Union’s weekly columns are a joint effort of the region’s high schools, the Bangor Daily News and Acadia Hospital. This week’s column was written by a Hampden Academy student. Her adviser is Matthew Moon.

Is Latin a dead language? No! Today, thousands of students worldwide study Latin. These students study a “dead” language because of their involvement in Junior Classical League, the largest classical organization in the world with more than 50,000 members.

Junior Classical League, or JCL, is composed of state or provincial chapters in the United States, Canada, and Australia. State or provincial chapters are broken down into local chapters – usually by school. Hampden Academy has one of the most active and powerful local JCL chapters in Maine and in the United States. Seniors and Advanced Placement Latin students Amelia Potvin and Dan LoPotro are the current National JCL secretary and Maine JCL president, respectively.

At the beginning of last school year, Hampden Academy’s Latin program was almost cut. After their beloved Latin teacher left Hampden to teach elsewhere, Academy Latin students had to petition the school board to continue searching for a Latin teacher. Luckily, despite the nationwide shortage of Latin teachers, Hampden recruited Benjamin Johnson to carry on Hampden’s growing Latin program.

Local JCL chapters can send delegates to state or provincial conventions during the school year. This year, Hampden Academy will be host to Maine JCL’s fall convention, because the group’s president, LoPotro, is from Hampden Academy. JCL conventions are the ultimate toga parties. Convention activities include contests in academic subjects, Latin and English oratory, graphic arts, spirit and trivia. Winthrop High School is the annual host of the Maine JCL spring convention at Camp Mechuwana in Winthrop.

Let it be known that JCLers are not dorks who lock themselves in their rooms translating old epics (although some JCLers may do that). Take, for example, the theme for this year’s fall convention: “Interdum feror cupidine magnarum partium Europae vicendarum.” If you say this to someone who understands Latin, you will get a laugh. It means, “Sometimes I just get this urge to conquer large parts of Europe.” Try it out on some of your friends.

The National Junior Classical League holds a convention each summer that is attended by hundreds of classics students from the United States and Canada. Last July, 18 students from Hampden Academy joined the Maine delegation to travel to the 50th National Junior Classical League convention at Trinity College in San Antonio, Texas. This year’s national convention is at the University of Richmond in Virginia.

In addition to being host to the fall convention and attending the spring convention, Hampden Academy’s JCL has other plans to carpe diem (seize the day). Planned activities include fund-raisers to support students going to national convention, as well as community service programs to heighten community interest in the classics. Take, for example, HAJCL’s Harry Potter Night. Did you ever realize how much Latin is involved in the Harry Potter books? This year, HAJCL will hold its second annual Harry Potter Night, because of the success of last year’s event. Last June, HAJCLers enchanted more than 100 elementary school children at their first Harry Potter Night.

It is hoped the growth and success of Hampden Academy’s Latin and Junior Classical League programs are indicators of how worldwide interest in the classics and in JCL will continue to grow. After all, who doesn’t want to be part of the ultimate toga party?

Schools participating in Student Union are Hampden Academy, Brewer High School, John Bapst Memorial High School, Old Town High School, Mount Desert Island Regional High School, Stearns High School in Millinocket, Nokomis Regional High School, Hermon High School, and Schenck High School in East Millinocket.