Why You Should Join BLSJCL

 

The Boston Latin School Junior Classical League will transform your life as you know it.

 

Yes. You read that right. Let me repeat it one more time: BLSJCL will transform your life as you know it. It won’t be instantaneous. No miracles here. You won’t immediately feel the urge to pump your fists repeatedly for an hour or shout from the top of Mt. Olympus that you love the Junior Classical League. At first, you might not even notice how much BLSJCL will enrapture your entire body and soul. I haven’t experienced love yet, but I bet you that falling in love would feel like being a member of the JCL.

 

Now I realize that I am setting up our little club (correction: it’s actually the largest JCL chapter in the entire UNIVERSE) for absurdly high expectations. I mean comparing some club that celebrates dead languages to falling in love? How believable is that? And I get that, I totally do. In fact, I was in your very shoes in 9th grade, when BLSJCL was actually a much smaller chapter. I joined JCL on the whim that Certamen was like Jeopardy! (because of the persuasive powers of Henry Tsang and Ms. Hausey) and, of course, because my Latin teacher offered extra credit. Don’t worry, Certamen isn’t that scary. Certamen is essentially a team competition in which several teams compete with buzzers and are tested in their knowledge of Latin grammar, mythology, history, culture, literature, etc. So if any of these things interest you, go join Certamen! BLSJCL boasts some of the greatest certamen players alive. We have several National champions and even one Certamen Hall of Famer!

 

But BLSJCL is more than just Certamen. Much much more than just Certamen. You can make catapultas or trebuchets, attend workshops and performs in skits, and show off your academic, artistic, creative, and/or athletic prowess at state and national conventions. This year, the BLSJCL is also introducing many publicity, spirit, and community service initiatives. But what makes BLSJCL truly great is the people. I was a painfully shy Asian girl in the 9th grade, but through the laughter and endless support from a bunch of endlessly quirky and friendly JCLers, I think I have come out of my shell now. 

 

So we invite you, fellow prospective member, to join us. Welcome, to the greatest club, scratch that, family in the entire universe. You won’t know what hit you. 

 

By Julia Pan, 2014-2015 BLSJCL Triumvirgo