Academics

Calvert School Stuns at VA Certamen, Claiming First Place

Three teams of Calvert Middle Schoolers competed in the Virginia Junior Classical League (VJCL) Kickoff competition this month, with the Eighth Grade teams claiming first and fifth place in the Competitive Novice Division. Hosted at St. Stephen’s and St. Agnes School on October 29, the competition included 41 teams and over 100 students from middle and upper schools. Calvert was one of only two schools representing Maryland.
During the event, the powerhouse team of Johanna P. ’23, Claire S. ’23, and Esme I. ’23 took first place in the Competitive Novice Division with a total of 545 points – indicating that they accumulated more than half of all possible points.
 
“They cruised to the title 140-80-70, the highest total across the three levels and brought home the first-place trophy,” Magister Snow said.
 
The second Eighth Grade team, made up of Chiara B. '23, Vivien W. '23, and Julianna I. '23, also excelled and claimed fifth place out of nine teams in the same division.
 
Meanwhile, Magister Snow says, members of the Seventh Grade team did well in their first Certamen experience and scored an impressive number of points with minimal preparation – just six weeks. According to Magister Snow, the team scored more points in this competition than previous Calvert teams accumulated in their own first events, so the School can expect great things.
 
Also notable are the recent victories of Vivien W. '23 and Claire S. '23 in the Maryland Junior Classical League’s Oreo coin contest. In this online contest, where Vivien and Claire claimed first and second place, students were tasked with designing and carving Roman coins out of Oreo cookies, and the MDJCL community voted on their favorites. The contest received 40 entries from around the state, with Vivien and Claire creating the standout submissions.
 
Next, the Calvert Certamen team will compete in the November 12 Yale Certamen at Yale University. Well done to all competitors and good luck on your next event!
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Calvert School is a coed independent lower and middle school.

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