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See It: The Community being helped
Greek Club is devoted to the learning of Ancient Greek language and culture. I started the club to spread my knowledge of Greek to other students in my school. Meeting for two half hour sessions a week, I taught my peers the basics of Greek out of the textbook ATHENAZE. To get enough textbooks, I had to pay for about 9 textbooks out of my own money. Once we had books classes began along with the school year. We started with an attendance of 11, and the number of participants in the club has remained at that level since then. Sessions are divided between language lessons from the textbook and presentations on history and culture made by all members, many of whom have many other rigourous academic commitments to maintain. In March members have the option to take the National Greek Exam, a standardized test administered to high school and college students learning Ancient Greek. This year, of 11 test takers, 10 scored within the top 20 percent of students at their level, and 5 scored in the top 10 percent (out of 1601 test takers!). Next year I plan to have two levels of Greek taught at the school for those wanting to enter the program. We are having a great time, and we are truly enjoying learning this beautiful ancient language.
Believe it: Describe your project/org
Build it: Steps taken to create the project/org and the kind of impact made
Vital Stats
| Started On: | 9/26/2006 | Ended On: | |
| People Involved: | 11 | People Impacted: | 20 |
| Money Raised: | $500 (as of 6/30/07) |
Project Updates:
After receiving the Plum Grant we almost got some media coverage. Unfortunately another story came up and we didn’t get any attention in the papers or TV. However, the school PTA found out and congratulated us. This was great, because we had the support of our school now. With this encouragement I immediately set out to solidify the plans for Greek Club the following year. I set up a checking account for the Greek Club and bought a ledger to keep accurate records. I began to buy more books online, and I bought a poster for publicity during Freshman Orientation. I also scheduled some summer meetings of the club to keep the current members fresh with their Greek knowledge. There we set up a plan for how the next year would be run. Two of the members from the first year would become teachers of the new students as Greek Level 1, and I would teach the old class as Greek Level 2. When the school year started we set right to work. There was a huge incoming class of 9 students who came to Greek 1; I had to buy more books. Things went great until we found out our meetings conflicted with another club. I scrambled to find other rooms, and the next week, Greek club began meeting in different rooms of the school. Now the second year of the Greek Club is in full swing, and we have plans to keep getting stronger all the time.
Highlights:
a. People in Greek 1 are learning Greek without me prodding them to do it. They’re excited about Greek, and they’ll continue the program in the future.
b. Getting back the National Greek Exam scores. I was amazed at how well we did, and I was excited for everyone who had worked so hard.
c. Finding a way to sing the Greek verb endings. Greek Club members know how to make Greek fun.
Things to do better:
a. We started last year too fast, and people lost a lot of fundamentals. This year is going more slowly, so members learn the material better.
b. Greek club conflicted with another club this year. I It took a while for people to adjust to the change. Next year I’ll make sure no other club conflicts with Greek Club.
c. Publicizing efforts have not been strong enough. More people would join if I had more effective publicizing. Next year I’ll work hard to make good notices for the Greek Club.
I’ve been lucky that everyone in Greek Club is really supportive and have helped me keep the club running. I’ve also gotten help from teachers who have let me use their rooms and have given me advice along the way. I think we have added a new dimension to the clubs at our high school, where the students work hard to actually learn outside the classroom. So far I think that the Greek Club has affected about 30 people, with students, teachers, and members of the PTA all excited about it. Greek Club has so far been a real success; students are coming together to learn a fun, engaging language, stimulating and broadening their minds. We’ve also maintained a budget, and we have a surplus for which we have big plans.
Budget So Far:
• $72.66: Reimburse last year’s expenses
• $70.85: 10 Greek books for this year
• $7.89: poster board for publicity at Freshman Orientation
• $11.42: bookkeeping record/ledger
• Remaining: $337.18. $150 earmarked for guest lecturer from University of Washington, $92.11 for publicity and fundraising, and 78.58 for miscellaneous costs (some will be left as extra for future years)
