Dear Professor Scaife:
Professor Terence Tunberg has informed me that the Classics Programs at the University of Kentucky are currently undergoing a periodic review, and he has asked me to say a few words about my experience with them. I am very happy to comply with this request.
My connection with Classics at the University of Kentucky has been via participation in sessions of the Summer Conference in oral Latin, aka the "Conventiculum Aestivum". This program has as its aim to assist Latin teachers at any level to improve their ability to communicate orally in Latin on virtually any subject, from everyday life (ancient and contemporary) to Classical literature and history. Although I must confess that initially I did not know exactly what to expect with regard to what I and the other participants could achieve, I must say that these summer conferences have exceeded my most optimistic expectations. It is a credit to Professor Tunberg and to the other persons whom he engages to assist him in this endeavor that they can in fact deliver on what the conferences promise to achieve. Both the conferences and Professor Tunberg himself have now achieved an international reputation that is well deserved.
In addition to improving my oral competence, my participation in the summer conferences has also vastly improved my reading competence and comprehension in traditional Latin texts. Finally, I wish to stress that, as the result of the summer conferences, it is no longer possible to teach my courses here at Westminster College in quite the same way as I have previously. Although I have not felt it possible to switch entirely to an oral approach, I am able to incorporate many oral techniques into my courses, and to encourage my majors to practice thinking, writing, and speaking Latin from the beginning of their careers.
Although I can only speak authoritatively from my own experience, the other participants with whom I have communicated seem to share a similar opinion, and I trust that some of them will also be writing their own letters. Although it is to be expected that not every participant will achieve the same level of proficiency and confidence in oral Latin, even those who still confess apprehension about their ability say that they are amazed at how much they have been able to progress in just the ten days to two weeks of intensive practice that these summer conferences provide.
I note from the Classics website that the new U.K. Institute for Latin Studies that Professor Tunberg told me last summer he hoped to begin in this academic year seems to now be an approved track for the Classics M.A. The description of the curriculum presented on the web page looks very sound, and I am sure that any graduate student who opts for this track will find it beneficial. I hope that the University can find the necessary funds to support this program adequately with both faculty and resources, including some graduate fellowships and assistantships designated specifically for this new M.A. track.
If I can be of any further assistance to you or to the other persons who are conducting this review, please feel free to contact me via telephone, ordinary mail, or electronically, as indicated below. I would also be happy to provide, if desired, a formal copy of this electronic letter on official College stationery, which I will send either via ordinary mail or via fax, if you will provide me with the appropriate address or fax number.
Sincerely, A. Dwight Castro, Ph.D. Professor of Classics Chair, Department of Religion, History, Philosophy, and Classics Westminster College New Wilmington, PA 16172-0001 Telephone: 724-946-7150 E-mail: castroad@westminster.edu
Created on ... March 26, 2001