Smallwood, Ohio
October 23, 2019
Edward F. O’Connor is back in business. As the lone Latin instructor at the Smallwood
Community College, O’Connor had seen enrollments drop to the point that officials
warned his courses might be eliminated altogether. But this year he has seen a surge in new
students. The reason? “It’s quite clear. These kids have heard the phrase ‘quid pro
quo’ so often it got them wondering where it came from. They all say that.“ The task now is to expand on this naïve curiosity. “I can see I have my work cut out for
me. During the first class I started to
explain the accusative case and just got blank stares. Finally, one young man asked, is that why
prosecutors use so much Latin, because they accuse people?” Still, O’Connor remains confident that the future
of the Latin program looks strong. “I
studied Latin intensely because I wanted to be a priest, so you could say that
faith brought me to Latin and faith sustains me. Besides, just think how much Latin will come
up in the impeachment trial.”
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