Benjamin Gautsch (BA, 2016)

In my undergrad, I graduated with a triple major in History, Religious Studies, and Latin (Classical Civilization). Classics was a big part of my undergrad and continues to help me in my graduate studies in Library and Information Science. Classics taught me how to read more closely and more critically which greatly improved the type of analytical and critical thinking skills that graduate programs and jobs require. Latin formed a lot of positive study habits for me as well as making me much more detail oriented and continues to be valuable to my graduate studies. As my focus has shifted into copyright law and policy in libraries and higher education, understanding the Latin used in law and case law has been beneficial. When I’m done with my graduate program, I plan on working in instructional design and educational technology in higher education and academic libraries.

Alison Longley (BA 2007; MA 2014)

I just began my sixth year teaching Latin at Niceville High School. I teach six classes, consisting of honors Latin I, II, III and AP Latin. I am also the sponsor of a chapter of the Junior Classical League. The students are very successful in Regional and State competitions. My degree in Classics has helped me in my career so much. I am able to teach the AP curriculum with ease because my professors at UWM thoroughly prepared me to teach the various authors required. “Gallia est omnis divisa in partes tres“is our class motto.  My UWM professors instilled in me a lifelong enthusiasm for the Classics, which I am now trying to instill in my own students.

Kayla Olson (BA 2017)

I am an alumna of the UWM Classics program. I graduated in the spring of 2017 with a double-major in Classical Civilization and Anthropology, a double-minor in Latin and French, and a Certificate in Ancient Mediterranean Studies. I then went on to earn an MA in Classical Archaeology at Florida State University. I am currently pursuing an MS in Library Sciences at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, where I am training to work in academic libraries for the social sciences, humanities, and arts. As a research assistant for the Carolina Academic Library Associates (CALA) I work in the Sloane Art Library, adjacent to the Ackland Museum of Art. I am still an active member of archaeological communities and look forward to serving them as a research and instruction librarian.

My studies in Classics were and continue to be integral to my understanding of the humanity. Training in ancient languages (Latin and Greek) and the encouragement to study modern languages (French, German, and Italian) have allowed me to read untranslated works across social and scientific communities. My engagement with historical texts has thus been tantamount to my reading comprehension and, more importantly, my critical thinking skills. Criticism of the past allows us to modify our standards for the present, and the Graeco-Roman world continues to dominate American and European literature, media, and philosophical thinking, and it certainly will not be going anywhere anytime soon.