HARLINGEN — How do you say it?
Judges were asking Emi Ruiz that very question earlier this month at the Texas State Junior Classical League State Competition in Garland.
Emi, 17, won the silver medal for sight recitation after reading a Latin passage.
“They grade you based on different qualities, like pronunciation, fluency, pauses, vowels,” said Emi, a senior at Harlingen High School South.
Emi and six other member of the Harlingen South Latin Team placed at the event, qualifying them to compete in the National Junior Classical League Competition in July.
“As a teacher I feel extremely overwhelmed and proud because these kids give of themselves so much to it,” said Marie Garza, Latin teacher and team sponsor.
“What can I say?” she asked rhetorically. “I expect the best of them and all of them gave me their best.”
A total of 12 team members competed in numerous events related to classical culture, including Sight Recitation, Greek Derivatives, and Roman Life.
“I liked Roman Life because, as someone once said, it emanates a lot of what we do in our day,” said Dalilah Sanchez, 17, a junior.
“When you take the Roman Life exam, you’re also taking the history exam, mythology exam,” she said. “The Roman Life encompasses all that they did, including other subjects.”
Dalilah liked Roman Life so much she took home the silver medal for that subject in Level 1. She earned another silver medal for the Pentathlon 1, Level 2, for her test scores in several subject areas.
“I’m quite pleased with myself,” she said. “I made flash cards, I studied, I looked up different things to study online by myself. My hard work and dedication to the subjects paid off.”
They’re looking forward to attending the national competition this summer in Ohio.
“I feel excited,” said Brianna Saldivar, 16, who won the bronze medal for the Pentathlon 1.
“I didn’t expect for my first time to place at state,” said Brianna, a sophomore.
While some joined the Latin Team for the sheer joy of exploring Latin culture, Brianna thought it would serve her career goals.
“I chose to be in the class because I want to be a lawyer and you have to know Latin,” she said. “And then I thought, ‘Well, if I’m in the Latin Club I’ll learn more about Latin, so I joined the Latin Club because of that.”
The students pointed out several times the connection of modern life to Classical culture. Certainly in Brianna’s case there’s also a strong connection to the future.
• Latin Oratory – Level 2 – Judith De La Garza, junior – Gold Medal
• Greek Derivatives – Level 1 – Kaitlin Villarreal, senior, – Silver Medal
• Sight Recitation – Level 1 – Emi Ruiz, senior – Silver Medal
• Greek Life and Literature – Level 1 – Kathryn Allen, sophomore – Silver Medal
• Roman Life – Level 2 – Dalilah Sanchez, junior – Silver Medal
• Reading Comprehension – Level 1 – Senior Emi Ruiz – Silver Medal
• Pentathlon 1 and 2:
• Pentathlon 1 -Maxima Cum Laude- Level 2 – Dalilah Sanchez, junior –Silver Medal
• Pentathlon 1 -Maxima Cum Laude – Level 2 – Kaitlin Villarreal, senior – Silver Medal
• Pentathlon 1 -Magna Cum Laude – Level 2 – Emi Ruiz, senior – Bronze Medal
• Pentathlon 1 -Magna Cum Laude – Level 2 – Brianna Saldivar, sophomore – Bronze Medal
• Pentathlon 2 – Magna Cum Laude – Level 3 – Alex Castillo, junior – Bronze Medal
