A hand-bound book similar to the 9th century Book of Kells. A 3-D printed set of Diocletian coins. A documentary-style infomercial about how to rid demons from your life, 3rd-century style. In Professor Jonathan Conant's Fall 2019 Course CLAS 1205: The Long Fall of the Roman Empire, students were given a simple guideline for their final project or term paper: "you are limited only by your imagination and my permission". Over the course of 6-7 weeks, students were tasked with researching and carrying out creative projects of their choosing that would deepen an aspect of a topic or theme covered in class.   

"I like to give students the choice of doing either a project or a paper," stated Professor Conant, "because it opens up more possibilities for active learning, it lets them play to their individual strengths and interests, it lets them get as creative as they want to be, and the results tend to be pretty memorable -- both for them and for me."  

Graduate student Ella Kirsh, who was the TA for the course, was kind enough to talk with us and give even more details about some of the projects.  Some of these projects, such as the three previously mentioned ones, exceeded expectations in their depth and creativity. Yet another memorable project consisted of an hour-long History Channel-style documentary about the 451 CE Battle of the Catalaunian Plains. The passion with which the students of CLAS 1205 pursued these projects and their exceptionally creative results prove that instruction of the Classics is continuing to grow and evolve while still remaining grounded in the rich culture and history that defines the field.