In spring 2020, Zeta Kappa, Trinity’s chapter of Eta Sigma Phi, inducted a record 20 students! Eta Sigma Phi is an honorary organization, chartered in 1914 with ancient Greek motto φιλοσοφοῦμεν καὶ φιλοκαλοῦμεν, which means, “We are lovers of wisdom and beauty!” It recognizes undergraduate student achievement in ancient Greek and/or Latin taken at the college level.

The 2020 Zeta Kappa initiates were George Adams (a junior majoring in Classical Studies and winner of a Goodwin Prize in Advanced Greek), Jacob Armentrout (a first-year student and winner of the Notopoulos Prize in First-Year Latin), Ansel Burn (a senior who majored in Anthropology), ,James Calabresi (a senior who majored in Theater & Dance), Jane Fantozzi (a first-year student), Ben Gambuzza (a senior who double-majored in Music and English), Whitney Hall (a senior who double-majored in Religious Studies and in Classical Studies), David Marottolo (a junior double-majoring in Music and Classical Studies and winner of the Notopoulos Prize in Intermediate Latin), Bailey McKeon (a junior majoring in Philosophy), Erin Molchan (a junior majoring in Sociology),  Kristen Morissette ( a graduating senior who double-majored in Classical Studies and in American Studies), Nick Price (a first-year student), Sophie Priddy (a senior who majored in Anthropology), Zac Schurman (a sophomore majoring in Music and in Religious Studies and winner of the Goodwin First-Year Greek prize), Keith Tanner (a first-year student and winner of the William Prize for First-Semester Greek), Peter Teel (a junior majoring in Philosophy and winner of the Title Prize in Intermediate Latin), Ananya Usharani Ravishankar (a junior majoring in Philosophy and winner of a Goodwin Prize in Advanced Greek),  Jessica Weiss (a senior who double-majored in Political Science and Classical Studies), Kyre William-Smith (a junior double majoring in Classical Studies and in English), and Ondra Zindr (a senior who majored in Neuroscience). A big χάριν ἔχω (ancient Greek for “thank you”) to Trea Mannello, who graduated from Trinity this year, was Zeta Kappa’s President for 2019-2020, and was instrumental in recruiting this year’s crop of initiates.

Eta Sigma Phi’s coat of arms. emblazoned with, on the upper right-hand side, a lamp that represents the light of learning; on the lower-hand side, a pyramid that represents antiquity. The ancient Greek phrase Φρόνις ἐστί δύναμις appears on the bottom, meaning “Thought is power.”

Spring 2020 was a very difficult semester, but four students majoring in Classical Studies rose to meet the challenge and graduated!
Whitney Hall graduated with majors in both Classical Studies and Religious Studies. This year, she was inducted into Eta Sigma Phi, in addition to being a leader in Trinity’s Life Design fellowship. She was a participant in Dr. Risser’s on-going excavation project in Akko, Israel in 2019. In the future, she looks forward to pursuing her interest in digital marketing.
Trea Mannello was Classical Studies’ Presidential Scholar for 2019-2020 and President of Zeta Kappa, Trinity’s chapter of the honorary undergraduate society Eta Sigma Phi. She graduated with majors in Classical Studies and in Anthropology.
Kristen Morisette was inducted into Eta Sigma Phi in 2020. She graduated with majors in Classical Studies and American Studies.
Jessica Weiss graduated with majors in Classical Studies in an Political Science (cum laude). which she found complemented one another: “Through my coursework in both fields, I obtained a more holistic view of the origins of democracy, political philosophy, and the key themes and motives of war.” She wrote her senior thesis about the behavior of the mortal king Tantalus, who was punished by the gods for attempting to feed them his own son! She was inducted into Eta Sigma Phi. We wish her the best at her new job at as a corporate paralegal at Simpson, Thacher, & Bartlett, LLP in NYC. In the future, she intends to attend law school, for which knowledge of the classical world (especially Latin) will benefit her.