A Summer at Villa Vergiliana
A CANE Endowment Scholarship Report by Susan Zoller: Two Vergilian Society Study Tours in Italy
I will remember gazing out from a villa rooftop toward the beautiful island of Ischia, hearing beautiful Italian music from a nearby venue, taking in beautiful fuchsia flowers in the courtyard, enjoying meals with friendly Anna and Simone serving us pasta, freshly picked garden vegetables, savory meats, or delicious desserts. I will recall our hostess Nina greeting everyone: undergraduates, graduate students, and Latin teachers who gathered for conversation, informative workshops and engaging talks on-site by world-class scholars. We made new friends and experienced a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. These memories will remain whenever I think of my time at the Villa Vergiliana in Cumae, Italy, from June 26 to July 23, 2016. Both tours included 4 days in Rome: truly a Latin teacher’s dream come true!
It is with a deep sense of gratitude that I reflect upon my time at the Villa Vergiliana. This opportunity was made possible through generous scholarships from both the Vergilian Society (VS) and the Classical Association of New England (CANE) Endowment Fund. My good friend and colleague, Diane Green, a Latin teacher at Co-Brown Academy in Northwood, NH, had encouraged me to apply for these scholarships and the two study tours at the Villa Vergiliana after she had received the same scholarship aid and attended in recent years. As the VS and CANE invest in helping teachers to attend the study tours, I will also continue to encourage my fellow colleagues in the NH Classical Association and CANE to apply for scholarships and experience these study tours.
I attended two study tours during my time in Italy: Romans, Etruscans, and Ancient Greeks: Exploring Antiquities from Tuscany to Campania with leader John Wonder for the first tour, and then Caesar and Vergil in Italy: a Study Tour for Teachers with Steve Tuck and Amy Leonard as leaders. While at the Villa, it was a privilege to meet Professor Richard Thomas, president of the Vergilian Society and also other members of the board. It was such a highlight to be with people who love classical antiquities, Latin and Greek, and the people of Italy! I was among several Latin teachers who enjoyed the hospitality of the Villa and who are now so excited about bringing to their students what they had experienced in their time in Italy. For me this means enriching my Latin classes at Spaulding High School in Rochester, NH, with newly acquired understanding, information and visual imagery.
I am now able to teach Latin I-IV with a more visual sense of the subject matter having been on location at the sites associated with classical history. I was able to learn from scholars who gave talks at multiple places in Rome, Pompeii, Herculaneum, Cumae, Tarquinia, Capri, Ischia, Capua, Sperlonga, Paestum, and Naples. I was able to learn from other Latin teachers about ways to teach Vergil and Caesar and as I teach my classes this year, I will share both experiences and photos from the study tours. As we study Vergil’s Aeneid in Latin II and IV, we will view and discuss Lavinium, the tomb of Aeneas and Vergil’s tomb, the cave of the Sibyl, and the entrance to the underworld at Cumae. When we study the Roman emperors I will share about Tiberius at Capri and Sperlonga and present photos of the palace of Augustus on the Palatine Hill, the Ara Pacis, the Forum of Trajan, and Trajan’s Column, the equestrian statue and column of Marcus Aurelius, the Colosseum (Vespasian and Titus), Arch of Titus, Arch of Septimius Severus, and the Arch of Constantine.
When I teach about Julius Caesar, my students will visually tour his Forum and view places connected with his death. Professor Steve Tuck encouraged all of us to use Trajan’s Column to help our students appreciate Caesar’s Gallic Wars—so many aspects of war visually depicted in that column! When I teach Pliny in Latin IV, I will draw upon my photos and experiences of Vesuvius, Misenum, and Stabiae. In visiting several amphitheaters in addition to the Colosseum and hearing about the lives of the gladiators, I was inspired to share with my students specific insights gained from our site talks. All Latin students love hearing about gladiators! Also, because Pompeii is very much a topic of interest and because I was able to have two all-day visits there with both John Wonder and then Steve Tuck, I will greatly enjoy sharing the information I gathered from an archaeological dig in progress there at the Villa of Mysteries!
Although I had been to Italy before, I had never been with fellow Latin teachers and scholarly lecturers for guides. Nor had I ever stayed at a place so beautiful, charming, and friendly as the Villa Vergiliana. In each study tour, we became a family of friends who cared about each other. I’m sure that I will stay in touch with many whom I met this summer, especially my two roommates, also fellow teachers. The travel to significant sites fueled our passion for what we teach and prepare us to share our excitement with students and fellow educators. It is so wonderful that both the Vergilian Society and CANE choose to invest scholarship aid in the lives of teachers of the Classics.
In closing, I will quote Christa McAuliffe, the astronaut who died in the NASA Challenger tragedy in 1986. She was from Concord, NH where I live. I had the privilege of meeting her when I taught in Latin at Concord High School. She said, “I touch the future; I teach.” In a very real sense, both the Vergilian Society and the Classical Association of New England are ‘touching the future’ as they invest in Latin teachers who daily ‘touch the future’ of their students; Latin teachers are in the position of igniting a spark of interest in Classical languages, literature, and history. I am very grateful to VS and CANE for investing in me and giving me the opportunity of a lifetime. Semper gratias vobis agam.