NCLG

Letters of Support

Parents, teachers, school administrators, and students can find below a resource of letters for support of Latin programs from a wide variety of professionals. These letters are reprinted here with permission from the authors.

We'd like to thank Rose Williams of Abilene, Texas for kindly offering these letters of support that were originally written at her request.

Need help keeping Latin at your school? See additional material and information at CAMWS's Committee for the Promotion of Latin.

• From a Doctor (7/15/02)

• From a Superintendent

• From a Lawyer

• From a Hollywood Screenwriter

• From a Music Teacher

• From a Doctor

• From an Administrative Director

• From a University President

From a Doctor

"... I started my freshman year at Tech in 1989 from Tascosa High School in Amarillo, under the mentorship of Gary Giles. Although I enjoyed my year with your department, I transferred to Univ. of Texas in 1990 (to see more of the world than West Texas, more than any reason). I majored in Classics, both at Tech and at UT, and received scholarships from both institutions (with all of your help). I started with Basic Greek under your tutelage, and took various Latin courses with Drs. George and Christiansen. I successfully graduated from UT with majors in Greek, Latin and Classical Studies (and a minor in Chemistry). Following undergraduate studies, I went on to medical school and beyond, culminating in the practice of Surgical Pathology at a private hospital in Corpus Christi (via Vanderbilt and Baylor College of Medicine).

"Seeing your [web]site, I had to drop you an email to convey my deepest appreciation for the experiences I had at Tech matriculating in your department. I still regard my studies in your department with the utmost of fondness. Having a strong background in Classics has, in my opinion, proved beneficial in my studies of medicine. Doctors don't have to major in Biology to learn how to think and become good physicians. I believe Classical Studies provides that ability as well as any major offered in the college curriculum."

Thomas Turner, MD

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From a Superintendent:

Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to say a kind word for the teaching of Latin in public schools. 

If I were "in charge of the world", I would require every high school student to take two years of it strictly for grammar, spelling, and vocabulary purposes. Abilene ISD has had an exemplary Latin program for years. It has consistently had a large enrollment. Currently 147 students at Abilene's two high schools are taking Latin. It's money well spent. Partially as a result of it, students are leaving high school, doing well in top quality universities, and going on to be successful in the businesses or professions of their choice. Further justification than that seems unnecessary.

Best wishes in your continued advocacy of the classics. 

Very truly yours,
Charles H. Hundley
Superintendent of Schools
Abilene Independent School District
P.O. Box 981
Abilene, Texas, 79604
E-mail chundley@aisd.org

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From a Lawyer:

My twelve-year-old son, Clark, is taking Latin I this year and thoroughly enjoying it. Working with him on his vocabulary words brings back many happy memories of your Latin class in high school. It also causes me to reflect on how much my life has been enriched by the study of the Latin language, literature, and culture. 

My scores on the SAT and the LSAT were dramatically improved by my knowledge of Latin. As you know, much of the vocabulary on those tests is rooted in Latin. Unfamiliar vocabulary on those tests became easily decipherable because I was able to identify and translate the Latin roots. 

As a Pre-law English major in college, I was repeatedly reminded that Roman mythology, history and culture form the foundation  of and are constant references in most of our great literary works. My background in Latin enabled me to understand literary allusions in the works of writers ranging from Shakespeare to Styron. 

While continuing classics courses in college, I also took four semesters of French. My background in Latin helped me to learn the French language quickly and easily. 

Law school was an exciting and challenging experience. Understanding  many of the bedrock concepts of our legal system was simplified for me because jurists and legal scholars through the centuries determined that these concepts are best expressed in the Latin language. 

Thank you for sharing your love of Latin with me when I was your student thirty years ago. My life is fuller and richer for it. It is such an honor to pass this legacy on to my son. 

Sincerely,
William Calvin Chaney, JD
William Calvin Chaney holds a Doctorate of Jurisprudence from the University of Texas at Austin. He is Associate Executive Director of Policy for the American College of Emergency Physicians His special field is legislation relating to the welfare of children.   

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From a Hollywood Screenwriter

Considering my extensive affection for Latin, it's my honored obligation to enlist in your crusade to salvage its instruction where endangered. 

As salutorian, I graduated high school with certain delusions common among those deemed academically elite. Those fantasies soon collapsed, however, when I joined the exclusive ranks of the University of Southern California School of Cinema/Television and its esteemed Thematic Option honors program. Luckily I possessed to my advantage two years of high school Latin and eventually two semesters more of college Latin (my high school experience permitted me to place out of a third semester). At its most basic, Latin is the study of one of the world's oldest, still extant languages, the foundation of several current and widely
spoken languages including English. For this reason, I firstly credit Latin with expanding my linguistic abilities and increasing my understanding of such terminology found in science, mathematics, and music. Even more than a highbrow word builder, though, Latin is the history, culture, and people from which sprang Western Civilization as we know it. Thus, not only did it enable me to better understand the words I read, I could more fully relate them to place, time, and social relevance. I cannot now imagine reading classic literature without the knowledge of its Latin ancestry. Nor would I care to isolate today's political spectrum without regard to Roman precedence. And certainly, the Latin-speaking world has an enormous influence on the Christianity timeline.

Now that I have advanced from the classroom, so have my subsequent uses for Latin. Not having studied any other languages, I successfully relied on Latin alone to aid me in my travels to Italy, Greece, France, Spain, and Mexico. Of course the biggest and probably most surprising debt I owe to Latin is professionally. I am not a scientist, or doctor, nor a teacher or historian, nor involved with any other profession too often considered the only reasons to study Latin. I am a screenwriter, and the debt I owe Latin isn't just the expanded toolbox of words it has given me, or even the allusions I can reference; rather, it's the lingering power of its stories and records of human nature that have survived for two millennia. Certainly Latin is not a dead language, as some would call it. It has shaped the very art, storytelling, culture, government, business, and thought we currently call our own. Perhaps it doesn't always call attention to itself with quotes and Italics, but it survives in the infrastructure of most terms and institutions we come in contact with every day. In fact, it's found in the roots, prefixes, and suffixes of many of the words in this letter. To ignore the heritage of Latin is to ignore the roots of ourselves; and like a tree, we need such roots if we intend to grow as both individuals and collectively as a society.

Thank you for your consideration.

Joe Bob Smith
15353 Weddington St. #A104
Sherman Oaks, CA 91411
(818)-906-2352
fax (818) 906-2609
SVTEX@aol.com

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From a Music Teacher:

This letter is written out of concern for the vanishing arts and languages in our public schools. I have been informed that it is being considered to drop Latin from a school curriculum. I am respectfully requesting that this not occur. It cannot happen. Latin is the base for so many languages. It is invaluable to students who have the privilege to learn this gift. Latin prepares so many students for life careers and gives them a tool to use in so many ways. Artists, musicians, professors, teachers, lawyers, mathematicians, doctors, and so many more professionals benefit greatly from their studies of Latin.

As a personal testimony, my son and I studied several years of Latin and continue to profit from them. As a musician, I continually call on my Latin background to translate the meanings of musical terms, vocabulary, and pronunciation. My son has greatly benefited from his Latin background in several ways including having an advantage on the many achievement and placement tests taken during undergraduate and graduate advancement. I advised my sisters to study Latin, and they, too, are grateful for
their experience.

Please consider the value of this gift we can continue to bestow on future generations. Don't rob them of the richness of this language. Thank you for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,
Sherry Frush
Vice President for Student Affairs
Texas Music Teachers Association 
3434 Ivanhoe Lane
Abilene, Texas, 79605
(915) 692-9233
fax (915) 692-6996
frumusic@aol.com

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From A Doctor

In high school, I was privileged to take two years of Latin. At that time, I was intrigued by the subject but did not realize that I would ever utilize this material later in life. Of course, when studying vocabulary lists for the SAT and later for my medical college admissions test, knowing Latin was invaluable in trying to determine the meaning of many of the more difficult vocabulary lists. However, the main importance of Latin occurred much later in my professional life after I was elected president of an international medical organization whose members were predominantly European. The knowledge of Latin as a base language was invaluable in giving me at least a foundation in trying to understand many words in Italian, French, and Spanish. It also gave me a much more in-depth appreciation of the cultural heritage of Western Europe and an understanding of the language trees involved in many of these countries.

The world is much closer together now because of the availability of jet travel, electronic media, etc., than when I grew up. I believe that it is invaluable to offer courses such as Latin which give us an idea of cultural and language heritage which many parts of the world share in common.

Yours truly,
Austin King, M.D.
2217 Danville Dr.
Abilene, Texas, 79605

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From an Administrative Director

I am writing to express my concern over recent rumors that a Latin curriculum is in jeopardy of dissolution. As a former honors Latin student, I would like to state that the loss of the program would be a great disservice to any student striving to strengthen their vocabulary, enhance their knowledge of history, or prepare for any college entrance exam or college science curriculum. My Latin courses provided me with a solid foundation to approach all of these areas with confidence.

If you have any questions or if any administrators would like to speak with me regarding my concerns, please do not hesitate to call. I can be reached at 713-770-2023.

Sincerely,
Cris Curnutt
Administrative Director
Texas Children's Hospital
1919 S. Braeswood Blvd.
Houston, Texas, 77230

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From a University President

I am happy to speak on behalf of the importance of Latin for any curriculum, whether junior high, high school or college-level. I first took Latin as a high school sophomore and it was, without exaggeration, the most significant academic experience in my high school days in terms of formulation my academic and professional career.

In the first instance, Latin made an enormous difference in my SAT scores from my junior to my senior year. I am convinced that my exposure to Latin raised my SAT scores by at least 150 points. Second, my years of Latin opened up the field of foreign languages to me. These studies, combined with my interests, ultimately led me to the study of theology which led to my work as an administrator in higher education. Now, as President of Baylor University, I am strongly supporting our own Classics Department because of the value it has for all undergraduates as they seek to learn about the contemporary cultures of the world and their history and to cultivate the global and democratic outlook which will enable them to become productive citizens in the twenty-first century.

Sincerely,
Robert B. Sloan
President
Baylor University

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