Teaching Latin in New York City’s Public Schools: A Panel Discussion Sponsored by the New York Classical Club, May 4, 2012

The four contributions below and this introductory framing piece present the findings from a recent panel on the resurgence of interest in teaching Latin as a curricular requirement at the core of a liberal arts education in several newly founded public schools in New York City. Four relatively new schools are represented here—in the order in which they appeared on the panel—by a combination of teachers and administrators: Williamsburg Charter High School (Ron Janoff), South Bronx Classical Charter School (Lester Long), The Brooklyn Latin School (Jason Griffiths), and Maspeth High School (Kathleen Durkin). Each contributor provides some background on his/her school and then attempts to shed light on the teaching of Latin there. In each case, the authors offer an overview of the curriculum and method of instruction, a survey of student results, some reflection on the struggles encountered, and new ideas for moving forward.