For Immediate Release. March 31, 2003.
The University of Arkansas sent ten student delegates to the University of Oklahoma last weekend for the 75th annual convention of Eta Sigma Phi, the national honorary society for students who excel in the study of Ancient Greek, Latin, and Classics.
The U of A fielded two teams in the CERTAMEN, a college-bowl competition in knowledge of the Classics. Both Arkansas teams defeated their opponents in the first round, and one U of A team went completely undefeated, winning the competition. This is the second time in five years that an Arkansas team has won this national title. The members of the winning team included Classical Studies students Glen Travis Blakney, Rachel Bushkuhl, Jason Connolly, and Nathan Sharpe. They accepted their 1st place award at the Convention banquet, held in the great hall of the Natural History Museum.
In addition, the national delegates elected U of A Classical Studies major Aaron Randolph to the office of MEGAS GRAMMATEUS (national secretary). The 2003 U of A Classics T-shirt, designed by Classics major Jacob Lewis, won second prize in the national T-shirt contest. The shirt includes quotations from Vergil and Theocritus (in Latin and Greek), and an image from a 5th-century BCE Greek vase (Apollo and Laocoon).
Delegates to this convention represented twenty colleges and universities in seventeen states: Arkansas, California, Illinois, Indiana, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and Wisconsin. The University of Arkansas sent more students than any other state -- and as many as the host institution.
Professors David Fredrick and Daniel Levine, Faculty Advisors for the local chapter, reacted in unison to the U of A's successful participation in the convention: "Forsan et haec olim meminisse iuvabit."
Information: Professors Daniel Levine and David Fredrick. dlevine (at) uark.edu, dfredric (at) uark.edu (479) 575-2951.
Classics Site: http://www.uark.edu/ua/metis2/
[The following photo and article appeared in the UARK Traveler on October 10, 2003]
For members of Eta Sigma Phi, life in ancient Greece or Roman is too exciting to only read about. The classical studies club reenacts ancient times and shares their knowledge with the UA community.
One of the goals of the club is to promote interest in classical studies - the history, art and literature of ancient Greece and Rome - among students and the community. The group also promotes friendship among students who are interested in classical studies.
A benefit of the club is that students are getting to know and interact with their teachers and other students outside of the classroom, said Daniel Levine, one of the club advisers.
Members have “a chance to get to know other students with similar interests,” Levine said. “And they have the knowledge that they are promoting the study of classics and sharing it with each other and the community.”
Eta Sigma Phi schedules many different activities throughout the year. One of the activities is poetry reading, Levine said. An example of one of the bigger public readings was one done two years ago. The club rented the Greek Theater and had a reading of “The Illiad” by Homer from dawn to sunset. Staff, students and community members took part in the reading, Levine said.
Another major activity is the Saturnalia, which is done every December. The members receive presents with Greek and Latin writing on them and have to translate the messages to figure out what the presents are, Levine said. Cena Deorum, or “Dinner of the Gods,” is another big event. The club members come to Cena Deorum dressed as gods or goddesses and are ready to have a good time. Other activities the club does are going on camp outs, participating in national quiz bowl competitions, reenacting Roman banquets complete with poetry reciting and belly dancers, and sending student members to schools to teach the children Latin and Greek phrases.
Scholarships to study in Greece or Italy are a huge benefit of the club, Levine said. To apply for a scholarship from the national Eta Sigma Phi organization, students have to have good grades, write an essay, have a letter of support from a faculty member and be active in the organization.
To be a part of Eta Sigma Phi, members must take either Greek or Latin and make a B or better for the semester. It is not a requirement to major in classical studies. During the last few weeks before the semester ends, the teachers in these classes will pass out invitations to a welcome party to the students who have at least a B.
There is “an extreme variety of people” in the club, said David Dewberry, the club treasurer. Dewberry has been a member of Eta Sigma Phi for four years and has complete six semesters of Latin. The annual fee is $5. This money helps pay for the group T-shirts, which have Latin writing, and all of the various activities. The meetings are scheduled for once a month, but the club does not always meet regularly, Dewberry said. They only meet when they need to discuss something. At the beginning of every meeting, everyone sings a Latin song called “Gaudeamus Igitur.” This song also plays on UA’s Eta Sigma Phi Web site: comp.uark.edu/~etasigma. Eta Sigma Phi is the club dedicated to studying the classics. It was founded as the Beta Pi Chapter at the University of Arkansas in 1950.
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