TY student, Oscar McHale explains in detail why he set up the Classical Youth Society of Ireland (CYSI) during the summer of 2014. On Friday, 24th April, Oscar was interviewed by John Murray on his RTE Radio 1 show about why he feels CYSI is so important. You can listen to a podcast of his interview in this blog.
For a long time I have dreamt about becoming a third level lecturer in Classical Studies. Yet one of my fears over the last few years is that, while I might eventually become qualified in Classical Studies, there would be no jobs available. Unfortunately, only 500 Secondary School students sat Leaving Certificate Classical Studies last June and this number is diminishing annually. Time and time again I’d talk to friends about Classics and get the response "I wish my school offered Classics as a subject".
While I knew it was next to impossible for me to bring Classics to their school as an exam subject, I decided to do the next best thing; I would bring Classics to them outside of the official school curriculum. When I finished my Junior Certificate I realised that being a TY student I had a wealth of opportunities to achieve this goal. If I could get at least fifteen people interested I’d organize a Classics talk. I placed a post up on various Facebook pages, within 24 hours I had 30.
I gave the first talk last August in a St. Stephen’s Green café. By the time it was finished I had close to 40 people gathered listening to the introduction to Classical Studies. The inaugural session of CYSI (Classical Youth Society of Ireland) was a great triumph.
Ms Donohoe, our passionate Classics teacher, promoted CYSI at the Classical Studies AGM this October. Trinity College and UCD offered us the use of facilities for our meetings. Also, the curator of the UCD Classical Studies Museum wants to help grow the society. We’ve come a long way since the first talk back in August but we still have a long way to go before my goal is achieved. See our Facebook page www.facebook.com/ClassicalYouthSocietyIreland/ for more details.
Oscar McHale (TY)
On Friday, 24th April, Oscar was interviewed by John Murray on RTE Radio 1 about his reasons for setting up the Classical Youth Society of Ireland and the work that he and his Society have done so far. There was a huge response to Oscar's interview both from the general public and from numerous Classical Studies Departments including Trinity College Dublin and Oxford University. Click here to listen to Oscar's radio interview.
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