What did we do during the pandemic? Sadly, we had to cancel first our 2020 Study Tour of Greece, and subsequently, the 2021 tour was not to be. But, we made the best of our situation.
We wanted to nurture the strong interest of the roster of teachers who registered for 2020, so we put our heads together and created a new seminar lecture series for the winter semester of 2021. It gave us the opportunity to try out some new themes, reach out to new lecturers and branch out educationally with an all new program. 100% of the 2020 roster re-registered for this opportunity.
John Camp was our first guest lecturer. Dr. Camp is a renowned archaeologist and has worked in the Athenian Agora since 1966, first as an excavator, later as assistant director, and now as the director, which he became in 1994. Dr. Camp has taught and lectured throughout the United States and the world. He was the Mellon Professor at the American School of Classical Studies from 1985-1996 and continues to teach there. He came to Randolph-Macon College’s classics department in 1996 to teach in the fall and January terms. Dr. Camp is currently the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Professor of Classics.
Dr. Theo Theoharis, led a discussion of the poetry of the great Greek poet, Cavafy. Dr. Theoharis teaches at Harvard University Extension School. He is the author of Joyce’s Ulysses: An Anatomy of the Soul (University of North Carolina Press, 1986), Ibsen’s Drama: Right Action and Tragic Joy (Palgrave Macmillan, 1996), and Before Time Could Change Them: The Complete Poems of Constantine P. Cavafy (Harcourt, 2001). He has lectured widely in Europe, Asia, and the United States.
Dr. Eric Cline of George Washington University, author of Three Stones make a Wall, is Professor of Classics and Anthropology, the former Chair of the Department of Classical and Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, and the current Director of the Capitol Archaeological Institute at The George Washington University, in Washington DC. He is a National Geographic Explorer, a Fulbright scholar, an NEH Public Scholar, and an award-winning teacher and author. After a very lively discussion, Dr. Cline invited and encouraged the Greek Fellows to join him on a working excavation when normal travel resumes.
Diane Kochilas, author, consulting chef and host of the PBS show, My Greek Table, spoke on Greek food, ancient and modern, sharing experiences of her life as a Greek American, and the importance of the Mediterranean diet. She has authored many cookbooks on Greek Food, including My Greek Table, a companion to her television program; The Food and Wine of Greece; The Greek Vegetarian, and Ikaria, Lessons on Food, Life, and Longevity from the Greek Island where People Forget to Die. During the summer months, Ms. Kochilas shares her love of her familial island with cooking classes and immersion into Ikarian village life, island culture, and the secrets of these islanders’ longevity, joy and peacefulness. www.dianekochilas.com
Prior to its March 2021 publication, Candlewick Press generously donated hardcover copies of Amber & Clay, by award winning author Laura Amy Schlitz, to all of our Greek Fellows to read in preparation for a book discussion led by our Educational Director, Barbara Scotto. Amber & Clay is a brilliantly crafted tale of Ancient Greece in verse for middle-grade fans of poetry, history, mythology, and fantasy.