Eight qualifiers will advance and compete at Troy University in Alabama from July 24 to July 29 at the National Junior Classical League convention. At state, students who have an interest in the language, literature and culture of ancient Greece and Rome compete in a variety of competitions from Latin vocabulary to Roman authors

“We had fewer people go to area this year, but proportionally we had the same,” sponsor Courtney Herring said. “More lower level kids, Latin I and Latin II, qualified compared to last year where all the qualifiers were all upper level kids. We have a bigger involvement with lower
lever kids and they performed better and smoother than past years.”

Hebron sent 22 students to compete at the Texas State Junior Classical League state convention in San Antonio from March 31 to April 2.

“Everyone goes and has a great time meeting new people and learning more about the language,” president Jun Jang said. “I learned more about the holidays and loved Saturnalia, which is a Roman Christmas. We threw a party where all the alumni came so I have fond memories of seeing my graduated friends again.”

The Latin club students who will attend the national conference include: sophomore Vincent Nguyen, Chance Hoang, Junior Hannah Mobley, Nathan Wise, Sony Lee and Annabel Wei, and senior Kimberly Morrison, and  Jun Jang.

“This year I competed in traditional photography, a more [artistic] style than the normal academic side,” Mobley said. “I went to Italy during spring break and I took a photo overlooking the scenery with my sunglasses. The judges ended up liking it and I received first place.”

The club has expanded compared to previous years and the team prepared more with old tests, flashcards, and reading roman authors to improve their performance.

“This year we focused more on spreading resources and materials to the other members of the club especially the vocabulary lists I have made over the year,” Jang said. “Students taking the same tests have studied together for vocabulary. In class we do grammar and vocab. Many of them have looked at old tests to study culture and find outside sources. Everyone overall studied a lot harder.”

Herring said she hopes the students will enjoy their time and be confident when competing at nationals since it is a very competitive competition.

“I hope to have more awards but it is very competitive at nationals,” Herring said. “I would like the kids to have fun and not feel bad if they don’t come home with a ribbon because they are competing against thousands of students. I want them to experience all the opportunities and not just stay together in one group but actually branch out and meet new people.”