Four Summit students attended the National Junior Classical League (NJCL) convention at Emory University in Atlanta in July. Wali Khan ‘23, Kori McLane ‘25, Rowan Lavelle ‘25 and Manuel Cantillo ‘28 competed against other Latin students from around the country in Creative Arts, Graphic Arts, Academic Tests, Athletics and Certamen. Summit proudly holds the title of State Champions in Ohio.
Manuel excelled athletically, finishing well in the Track & Field Olympika and placed high in discus, the marathon, the 100-meter race and the 200-meter race. This placed him 25th in Olympika points and 45th in overall sweepstakes. Manuel also competed on Ohio’s Novice certamen team, facing tough opponents from other states and narrowly missing the semi-final round.
Wali placed 17th on the Hellenic History test and was selected to give the closing remarks at the third General Assembly of the convention. Addressing the 1235 attendees, he shared his memories of NJCL conventions and his view of the event as a place for family, competition and round table discussions. Elected the Ohio Senior Classical League Parliamentarian in March, Wali was also selected to be the National SCL Parliamentarian at this convention. In the summer of 2024, he will lead the college students that help run the convention through their election events.
Rowan also prospered academically, placing high in Reading Comprehension: Poetry, Classical Art, Mythology, Reading Comprehension: Prose and Roman Life, all at Level III.
Elected first Vice-President of the Ohio Junior Classical League (OJCL) in March of 2023, Kori led all of Ohio’s state fellowships and meetings during the convention as the OJCL President. She recapped each day’s events and encouraged the delegates to try new activities throughout the week. Kori performed well across the board, placing high in a variety of activities. In Academics, Reading Comprehension: Poetry, Classical Art and Mythology, Kori scored well at Level III. In Creative and Graphic Arts, she excelled. This added up to placing 9th in Overall Graphic Arts points and finishing 34th out of all 944 students competing at the convention.
Also in attendance was alumna Irene Calderon ‘22. Having previously served two terms on the NJCL board, Calderon was elected NSCL Editor at last summer’s convention. She completed the duties of her office over the course of the year, culminating with her editing and publishing the convention’s daily satire magazine, The Convention Ear.
Latin teacher Ms. Mays ‘05 continued to serve in her capacity as OJCL State Chair of Students, advising the OJCL board as they led the Ohio delegation through the various activities and competitions throughout the week.