The first inaugural Latin Fest was held Friday for members of the ISU and Terre Haute communities to celebrate Latin and classical studies in the modern world.

"We want to bring together the different members of the Latin community from Terre Haute and around the state," said Angela Nicholas, president of Eta Sigma Phi, a Latin/Greek Honor society.

After the welcome and introductions, first-year Latin students gave four presentations.

"We wanted to have students more involved," said April Philpott the secretary and treasurer of Eta Sigma Phi at ISU. "They got extra credit for participating, and it was a good way for them to be a part of Latin Fest."

Hanna Burris, a freshman English major, and Adam Steele, a junior life science major, performed a skit in Latin titled "'Rufilla et Salvius':Marital Discord in Roman Britain," dressed in clothing from the era.

In the story, the wife was frustrated because she felt her husband didn't take her feelings into consideration.

"We were a Roman couple," saidBurris. "I told my husband I wanted a house in Britain because my friends had one in Britain. But then I wanted to move back to Rome because of my friends. I told him that he was a cruel man that understood nothing."

There were also three PowerPoint presentations.

The first PowerPoint presentation was titled "A Trip to Rome."

Michael Heath, a sophomore life science major, took a humorous approach to informing the audience about the historical landmarks in Rome.

One interesting fact from Heath's presentation was that Castel Saint Angelo is connected to the Vatican and is often called a "hideout for the Pope."

The third presentation was titled "The Colosseum and Gladiators Who Fought There."

The Colosseum was constructed in 80 A.D., seats 50,000 people and sits on six acres of land. Millions of people visit every year, and the price for admission is equal to about $10.

The last presentation was by Shannon Horne, a junior English and photography major. Her slideshow consisted of pictures she had taken while studying abroad in England.

Horne said she developed an interest for classical studies and culture during her freshman year at ISU.

"My freshman year I took a general honors course, and it was classical Rome and Greek history and mythology," she said. "I found it very interesting."

There was a panel discussion with guest panelists, various Eta Sigma Phi members at ISU.

The purpose of the panel discussion was to motivate students interested in classical studies.

"The purpose of the panel discussion was to find out how studying Latin influenced the panelists and get ideas on what to do after college," said April Philpott, a sophomore English education and cross linguistics major.

After the panel discussion concluded, Nicholas thanked everyone in attendance.

She was pleased with the turnout and the event.

"I think it (the turnout) was excellent. It was everything that we hoped it would be," she said. "It just started out as an idea that we threw out at a meeting, and it met my highest expectations."

Philpott agreed, "It went well. This is the start of a new tradition. Next year it will be better, but I'm very pleased."