Ep 173 | The Latin legacy effect!

SPEAKER_00 0:00

What I love about teaching at the same school for such a long time is the family tradition that kids will take Latin. I have students now whose parents took Latin, her aunts and uncles were in Latin, their older siblings, and they come in already expecting certain things.

SPEAKER_01 0:19

The impact of everything they learn in Latin in the actual class helps them be more successful in all of our state tests. So they score very high. So they help us from even reaching a school grade point as well as qualifying for college.

SPEAKER_02 0:39

Welcome to the Voices United in Education podcast. Each week, we showcase the teachers, administrators, and community members who go the extra mile to contribute to the success of every child in Escambia County. You'll meet the real people behind the titles and learn about the amazing resources to support your child's success. But this was the case for our next guest. After graduating from college, it was her high school Latin teacher who called her and begged, please come take my job. Clearly, she had an impact as an impressive student. Now she's having an impact as the Latin teacher at the very high school she graduated from. Today, she, along with the Escambia High School principal, will share how Latin Club is not just a competitive outlet, but gives students a competitive edge. Cultivating collaboration, communication, and content, more trophies than shelf space. Amy Hornick and Dr. Dana Body. Thank you for being here, ladies. Thank you. Thank you for having us. So, Amy, you hold the record at EHS for having taught there the longest 36 years, which is amazing. That's a lot of legacy, but also a lot of trophies. I had the privilege of seeing them in the video when we did our pre-chat. And you told me that EHAS Latin Club has won first place. I have to read this because it is so impressive. First place at state five times? Six times, actually. I told you the wrong number. Oh my gosh, six times. Okay. Holds the longest winning streak of being in the top five at state, even against private schools who start Latin earlier in middle school and has a long streak of winning at regionals year over year. What I want to know is what effect does that legacy have on those incoming newbies to the Latin club?

SPEAKER_00 2:38

What I love about teaching at the same school for such a long time is the family tradition that kids will take Latin. I have students now whose parents took Latin, her aunts and uncles were in Latin, their older siblings, and they come in already expecting certain things. And the ones that have no idea what we're about walk into the room and see the trophies. And it's kind of a wow factor. They want to know how do we get involved in this? And so the new students want to keep that tradition going. And I talk about that a lot with them. You know, we have a legacy to uphold. And so it kind of gets them invested from the very beginning. They want to be a part of adding a trophy to that shelf that they helped darn.

SPEAKER_02 3:23

Probably too, they imagine that trophy will be there for the next student. It's like not just a legacy for the school, but a legacy for them. Yes. And that's major for self-confidence and feeling like you belong, right? That's beautiful. Dr. Boddy, you said in our pre-chat that Latin club is special. And I can see that you feel that. Like you with your body language and your facial expression, you're like, this is just a special thing. But to the uninitiated, that just sounds like a strange combination of words. Latin club is special. So can you explain why it's special?

SPEAKER_01 3:57

I think it's a sense of community that Miss Horning brings to that. She loves her kids with everything that she is and believes in the subject that she's teaching. She believes in everything about the students. Sometimes, you know, in after school, they're not just practicing Latin. She's helping them with all of their subjects or with whatever their needs are. They consistently give up spring breaks, summer breaks, they'll come work on Latin and spend that time doing that. So every spring break, she asks for the keys to make sure she can get the students in the building because instead of being at the beach, her children will be in the classroom studying Latin. That in and of itself, thinking about high school teenagers who just can't wait to be back at school and work on Latin and work on competition. They're extremely competitive. Like you said, they've won a lot of awards. And that's something that is instilled in them. They want to do well for themselves, for the school, for Miss Hornik, and they're pretty passionate about their competitions.

SPEAKER_02 4:56

Okay. Explain this to me because I did not know that students were like, no, no, I don't need to go to Panama City. I will go back into the building from which I am taking the break from. Why? How is this happening?

SPEAKER_00 5:11

Because normally spring breaks a couple of weeks before our big state competition. So they're not their normal school length of a day, but we do take at least three days during spring break where they'll come up for three or four hours and do that final last minute studying.

SPEAKER_02 5:27

That's impressive. I mean, that is the kind of gang that their parents would want their kids to be a part of, right? And talk to me about this after school thing that you do. It is what Friday after school?

SPEAKER_00 5:40

Yes. Majority of the kids will stay Friday. And once we get closer to competition time, our regional event is at the end of January, usually in states, early April. We'll start powering out the study time instead of right now. We're doing a little more socializing, getting to know each other, playing fun games. We're going to start working on homecoming decorations this week to decorate our hall. But once competition is closer, they'll spend their time studying and helping each other study. And our competitions involve more than just academic testing. We also have creative events that they do. So the students will work on paintings and models and posters, and it's amazing what they come up with. And I love how the older students will help the younger ones. We have a real tradition of that. Sometimes they come back after they graduate and help them get ready for these contests.

SPEAKER_02 6:36

Really? Okay. So the legacy is not just the trophies. No. That is special. Okay, so talk to me more about the competition piece because I don't have any framework for what a Latin competition looks like. So it's not just the language part of it. There's creative pieces. Can you kind of paint a picture?

SPEAKER_00 6:56

Sure. Every student chooses one academic area to take a test on. It's a 50-question, multiple choice test. They have options like classical mythology or Latin vocabulary or Roman history or Greek literature. There are about 14 different choices, classical art. And they study that specific topic and take the test. And they're leveled by Latin ones compete against each other, Latin twos compete against each other. So the top scores at our regional event get first through fifth place. And then I have the hard job of deciding which one of all of those kids that went to regionals. Usually it's around 100. I have to pick 25 to be our state team. And it's state, they compete in, well, in regionals as well, two areas. So they can choose two tests if they would like to. But a lot of our students like to do a creative event as well because they're great artists, or they can build things. I had a student who graduated a few years ago that every year would build, he built a catapult and then different examples of Roman engineering. He was in our engineering academy as well. So he was connecting those things, what he was learning in engineering, with his Latin projects. And also they can do a costume. There's a character they have to portray and they have to justify their choices in the costume that they create and talk to the judges about the character and their knowledge of that and how they decided what to wear and what to create for their costume. Or they can do speeches, they memorize passages in Latin and they have to dramatically portray them, or write their own persuasive speech about a topic from the ancient world. So there are all kinds of options. And we also have what's called Kirtamen, where you have a four-person team. It's like academic team where they're asked questions and it's all about speed and knowledge there.

SPEAKER_02 8:51

This is so interesting because I did not imagine that there'd be so many versions, flavors, if you will, of Latin club. I really thought it was truly okay, look at these root words. Aren't they great? But what you're saying is students can come and bring a variety of talents and can exercise those talents through the avenue of the Latin club and these competitions.

SPEAKER_00 9:18

Yes, that's what I love about the Junior Classical League, the organization. There really is something for everybody. Whatever your skills are, you know, I tell them when we're getting ready, you know, if you have a talent that's a creative thing, just tell me what you can do, and I'll come up with an idea for you that you can create something to enter for the competition. And they even do fun little sports events as well, which is funny to have Latin students. Well, at regionals, we just have some running events and we throw a frisbee and call it friskus because you can't throw a real discus. And at state, they have the same kind of silly games, but they can win awards for those things. It doesn't count for the overall school award for you know the champion or anything, but it's fun. And at nationals, they have real athletic events like swimming and track and field.

SPEAKER_02 10:09

That is so cool. Dr. Body, I see you as a principal seeing like the 10 mile up, right? And you see the one mile up, we'll say. So from the macro perspective, do you see how these students are impacting the overall culture on campus at Escambia High School?

SPEAKER_01 10:27

Absolutely. Latin students have a positive impact across our campus, not only because they're completely driven to do well academically, the impact of everything they learn in Latin in the actual class helps them be more successful on all of our state tests. So they score very high. So they help us from even reaching a school grade point as well as qualifying for college. Additionally, I would say that one of the things that Ms. Hornik does is instills the love for Escambia. She's been there for so long. And so those students have a lot of school spirit and help us bring that back. After the COVID years, that was something that was a little bit lost in the sense that as she mentioned, kids prior to the mentors, the older students always set the precedents for what the younger students know is the norm. And there was a little bit of that lost through that process. And now we're so far removed from that that we're starting to see a lot more school spirit. And a lot of that is instilled in the things that they do and you know, their love for the school. Escambia High School is a very special place. And students like Latin is one of the things that makes it so special. When I first got my job at Escambia High School, I'd be out in town and people would say, I heard you got a new job. Like, yes, I'm in Escambia High School. And they're like, Oh my goodness, is Miss Hornik there? Oh my gosh. So it's a key point of something that's very exciting at our school that kids have opportunity to travel for the first time or compete and get engaged in the academics. And so, in many ways, Latin class and club have such a huge impact on our school.

SPEAKER_02 12:02

It sounds like the extra that she's putting in kind of spreads. It becomes like the cornerstone for that culture of like, okay, I as a student now am also going to give extra while I'm here at school. But then also then they graduate and then they come back and give extra. And definitely that giving spirit, I mean, it is something that it's a positive quality that we all want in our neighborhoods and our communities.

SPEAKER_01 12:27

Absolutely. We even have our new SGA sponsor who has a strong, passionate love for Scambia High School as well, was one of Ms. Hornick's students. And she said the reason I came to education was because of Ms. Hornik. So she can just keep bringing all of them back.

SPEAKER_02 12:42

Um no pressure, but we're gonna need that. Okay. Absolutely. Well, I want to talk a little bit about the learning curve of Latin Club and that process because you said something interesting when we were talking before. You said one of the benefits of Latin Club is the quote, value of getting there. I wanted to ask you in a world of instant chat GPT answers, is the value of getting there? Is that a hard sell to students right now?

SPEAKER_00 13:10

Sometimes, yes. You're talking about the, I think what I was mentioning was I always want the students to know for sure that I am proud of them no matter what trophy they get. And that what I'm more interested in than the final results is the work they put in to get there and the lessons they learn about hard work and discipline and really working hard to achieve something.

SPEAKER_02 13:35

Yeah, I think that's a really important lesson that would be easily overlooked in a structure, societally speaking, that values the check mark, that values the trophy, that values the W. You're talking about the process and not the end result.

SPEAKER_00 13:51

Yes. Yeah. I was talking to some students this morning, and one of my students who's very academically gifted, and I've heard kids say this before, you know, a lot of students that are smart can kind of get by with not putting in a lot of effort and still get the grades they want. And these students were telling me and have told me in the past it's preparing for these Latin competitions that really did the most to get me ready for college, to know what that meant to really put in a lot of extra work and study and preparation.

SPEAKER_02 14:24

That's interesting. Yeah, you're right. I was the student in high school who always had to learn how to study and I had a practice. And my lovely brother was the one who could scan the chapter and then get an A. And he struggled a little bit more in college than I did because I had those study skills. But beyond that, you're not just teaching the study skills, you're teaching the push, the push beyond, oh, this is hard. I'm frustrated. Do you see that kind of character quality develop in your students?

SPEAKER_00 14:55

Yes, because in the beginning it's hard. And they'll look at these practice tests and there are 50 questions and they get 20 right, and they're like, oh no, I can't do this. And then I have to show them, look, you can do this. We have the resources and we have the time, and I can help you get there.

SPEAKER_02 15:13

So tell me more about your students. What are they like academically? What professions do they go after after they graduate? Paint me a picture of who they are. They're all different. Really?

SPEAKER_00 15:26

Scambi is such a diverse school. We have students who go off to very competitive schools and have ambitions to go to medical school or become lawyers, but we also have students that stay in town. And I was talking to Dr. Boddy about a student who is starting at PSC this year, but he spent last year working to get together the money he needed to go to school. And they all have different ambitions, and I'm so proud of all of them, no matter where they end up and what career they choose. And I do tell them towards the end of their senior year when we're going through all, you know, I always tell them I'm not emotionally ready to say goodbye to you guys yet. So because one thing I love about Latin is I can teach them for four years. I start out with these somewhat, sometimes awkward ninth graders, and I see them grow and develop in confidence and leadership and ability by the time they graduate as seniors, and they've been in my class the whole time. We have students that go into the military as well that come out of my Latin program. They're not all college-bound, but I hope that they all what I tell them before they graduate. I hope you find something that you're passionate about and you make the decision about what to do with your life based on your passion, not necessarily on what job's going to get you the highest salary.

SPEAKER_02 16:46

Well, it sounds like Latin Club is really code for mentorship and community. And for you, that must just be so interesting, not only having those students for all four years, which as you pointed out is such a front row seat to their development, but also having been at Escambia High School for 36 years to really see how different generations live life differently, how they view problems differently. What do you hope for the set of students that you're currently teaching?

SPEAKER_00 17:19

That they spend their year loving school and wanting to be there, that I can help foster that by providing a place where they feel loved and safe and welcomed, and providing them opportunities no matter who they are and what they're good at, that they feel like they can excel. I had a student tell me this morning, I'd never been to a competition until I took Latin. This is a gifted, talented student. And the opportunity to do that was something she had never had before.

SPEAKER_02 17:51

So this really proves to her that have you ever heard the saying, don't ask the fish how the water is? Yes. Because they're in the water, so they don't know how to answer. And sometimes those students are really smart, they don't know they're smart, and then that competition, I imagine, would be validating to them and set them up for an you know, win begets win, as they say.

SPEAKER_00 18:12

Yes, encouraging them to do something outside of their comfort zone as well. I have a student and I tell her story every year. The week before we were supposed to go to regionals, she had just decided I'm not gonna go. And this was a gifted student. She wasn't friends with other people who were going, so she was kind of hesitant and shy and decided she wasn't gonna go. But the older kids came into my class and started trying to hype them up and get them excited and changed her mind. It wasn't me that changed her mind, it was the seniors that year. And she went, she had a fantastic time, won first place, ended up going to state for the next four years and became a Latin teacher. No way. Oh my gosh. So that one moment, that one decision, that one student who encouraged her changed her life, really. Wow. So I tell my new students that every year because you always have those who are hesitant for whatever reason, they don't want to participate. And I I don't think they're all going to become Latin teachers, but it could be a decision that changes their focus for the next four years.

SPEAKER_02 19:16

And that's a very obvious trajectory of she went left instead of right. But how many other things are you not seeing? How many other examples of confidence built, relationships cultivated, the ability to speak up for yourself, to hear your inner voice to say, I like that or I don't like that. Sometimes that's found in these small moments. Dr.

SPEAKER_01 19:37

Boddy, you're nodding your head. Absolutely. I see it constantly. One of the things I thought about while we were sitting here listening to her talk about some of the student examples. And I could be wrong, but I think I'm right. I think every year I've worked at Escambia High School, she's been mentioned in either the Val or Sal speech on stage at graduation because of the impact that she's had. And I actually I think it's every single year. Either the Val or the Sal or both have given a salute to Miss Hornik and the impact she had on their lives and the trajectory of where they're headed.

SPEAKER_02 20:10

So she's looking skeptically at you, but I believe you.

SPEAKER_00 20:17

Are you skeptical? Well, it's it's not every year, but many years. Every year I've been there. Okay.

SPEAKER_02 20:24

I think it's well, I'm glad we got that out of there too. Okay.

SPEAKER_01 20:28

So to be clear though, not many people can say that every time the top two students in the entire school get on stage, most of the time they mention a teacher. Yeah. Not many people can say that. So that's saying the impact that she has and the impact that the program has on their life has made such a difference that you're a key part of how they got to where they were. Exactly.

SPEAKER_02 20:54

So now you're the fish in the water that you're like, what? That's normal. Of course, of course. What does the student leadership look like within Latin Club? What opportunities are there for kids within the club to step up and hold different, I don't know, are there officer roles? What does that look like?

SPEAKER_00 21:12

Yes. One of the things we focus on are leadership opportunities. A student told me this morning I was asking them, and these are sophomores that were just involved in one year. You know, at the beginning of the year last year, I was very quiet and I wasn't very confident. Well, she ended up running for an officer position and is now the vice president. And that's one of the benefits I see from ninth grade to 12th grade students who would not not dream of speaking up in front of a group of people who become leaders in our Latin program. And sometimes we have state officers from Latin as well that are there in front of the whole convention, a thousand people, you know, as an officer from Scambia High School. So that's amazing. And even the ones that don't have an elected office, you can see them step up and Become mentors to the younger students.

SPEAKER_02 22:03

But that probably wouldn't happen if they didn't feel safe within the club. Like you're describing all these beautiful moments where even if they're not working on prepping for a competition or studying for one of their classes, they're having social bonding after class. And so if that foundation wasn't laid, maybe they wouldn't feel that they could risk take by applying to be an officer or try to step up to some sort of leadership role. And that's a really important benefit for those students. Yes, I think so. I wanted to ask about scholarships and some of the kind of more uh detailed areas of Latin Club. If a parent is listening, can they expect that their child may be able to get a scholarship to college through the participation in Latin Club?

SPEAKER_00 22:58

We offer at the state level a scholarship for a student who is going to a Florida university who wants to continue their study of Latin or the classics. So I've had students two years ago, the winner of that scholarship was an Iscambia student. The national organization offers scholarships as well. If they go that far and they want to compete at the national level, there are scholarships they can apply for. There are a limited number of those, but I always tell the students, you know, look, if you put that you took Latin for four years on an application for a scholarship, that's going to make you stand out. And if you can add to that that you want awards for Latin, I think anything like that will help them on any kind of application, whether it's getting into school or winning scholarships. That's true. Having that unusual thing that's going to stick out to the people that are reading those applications.

SPEAKER_02 23:52

I didn't think about that. That's a great point to bring out. Is there anything else that parents might want to know about their student participating in Latin Club, like time or financial investment?

SPEAKER_00 24:04

The investment of time is really up to what the kids want to put into it. So the kids that go to state are expected to be there and studying. Like I said, we come up during spring break, but if they're out of town, you know, it's not like I kick them off the team or anything. They're just expected to study from wherever they are. And we do stay after once a week. So there is a time commitment there if they want to represent us at the state level. Financially, I try to make everything accessible to all of our kids. So we fundraise all the time. Every day after school, we sell snacks to the students that are there after school. And so we have students that are there every day helping out with that activity so that we have a pot of money that we can share with kids who might not be able to afford to go to the competitions. The state competition, the district helps us out with some money towards the bus. We have a lot of alumni donors that will step up when needed and help out the students that really need that extra help.

SPEAKER_02 25:05

I love it. There's no detail that you haven't looked over. I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Dr. Body, we've covered a lot of student benefits. We've bragged on student achievements. Obviously, she's very proud of her students, as she should be, but I think we should make some room to brag on her. So is there anything else that we haven't covered? You're now the chief officer of brag patrol for Amy. Is there anything that you want to highlight?

SPEAKER_01 25:35

She gives her entire heart and soul to those kids, constantly making sure that their needs are met, that she's pouring into them to provide those leadership skills and to foster those opportunities, as well as making sure that she's the one that's always organizing every single fundraiser to ensure that kids that don't have the finances can make it there. But beyond that, so many people have chosen a scambia. We will have people choose a scambia because they want to make sure, even if their family has moved out of the district, that they're going to come and take Miss Hornick's class. She's had people go into education because of the impact she had on their lives. And I think that speaks for itself, really. Ms. Hornik is one of a kind. And I hope she teaches forever because I can't imagine finding somebody who can fill her role and be as impactful as she has. Her kids love her, the parents love her that have students in her program and all of her coworkers. She loves everyone at that school and does such a good job to pour into them in whatever way they need. Oh, I love that.

SPEAKER_02 26:45

You're like, I've been bamboozled. I didn't expect all of this. But your legacy obviously deserves it. So thank you so much for everything that you do. And thank you for sharing on the podcast today. I realize being on a microphone is an unnatural thing for a human to do, but sharing the insight from within your classroom outside the classroom, that's really what gets people excited and makes them proud to not just be a part of a school, but a part of a county. And you're a big part of why that is. So thank you. Oh, thank you.

SPEAKER_00 27:19

I feel very blessed to be where I am to have supportive colleagues and administrators like Dr. Boddy and the students I've had over the 35 years, now the 36th year. They're just fantastic people. And I learn from them as much as they learn from me. And I just am so blessed to be in this job and get to do what I love teaching these kids.

SPEAKER_02 27:43

Well, thank you again. I appreciate you both. Thank you. Thank you. Thanks for listening. Be sure to subscribe and share. Voices United in Education is a production of Escambia County Public Schools.