I am a Latin teacher. Until the summer of 2011 I worked in communities with high poverty rates, either urban or rural, most recently in North Carolina. Toward the end of this time, North Carolina, in its infinite wisdom--please note the sarcasm here-- decided to make staff development in one's content area mandatory for renewing teaching licenses. Finding high-quality staff development in Latin near home or at an affordable price turned out to be nearly impossible.
Desperate, I applied for grant money from three different organizations for summer study in Italy. I was lucky enough to land two of them. Hence, an awful situation turned into a learning experience of a lifetime as I spent a week in Maryland, preparing for the trip, and then six glorious weeks in Italy. Funding for Maryland and the first four-week program in Italy came through the National Endowment for the Humanities. Funding for a the two-week program, which dove-tailed perfectly with the first one, came through the Fund for Teachers and the Rural School and Community Trust. The two-week tour was with the Vergilian Society. Our groups studied mostly in Rome and its environs and in Southern Italy, especially Campania and the surrounding islands of Capri and Ischia. We also made forays into Etruria to study the ancient Etruscans.
I originally blogged about this trip for the benefit of my students and of students everywhere. It was also part of a requirement for the second grant. That blog is no longer available, so as I have time I plan to re-construct my adventures as much as possible from my original notes and digital photographs.
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