by Charlie FriedmanThe 74
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In November 2025, Pope Leo XIV signed new regulations for the Roman Curia stating that institutions “will draw their works in general Latin or in other languages” — a quiet but symbolically significant retreat from the exclusive role of Latin.
Leo’s warning in Latin is understandable. When the “Habemus Papam” was distributed in Latin declaring him Pope, it was met with controversy Widespread confusionA resurgence of debate over whether Latin is still useful in the modern era.
Rumors of Lattin’s death are greatly exaggerated, but school districts are planning his funeral. That needs to stop; The first step in planning for the continued life of Latin is to resist the elitist label that studies the language. Latin is an equity tool, and we don’t recognize that enough.
Latino programs across the country are being euthanized. In Needham, Massachusetts, a budget shortfall of more than $2 million combined with declining enrollment has led the public school district to eliminate its entire high school Latin program. Only 62 students were enrolled in four classes compared to 945 in Spanish. Latin 1 had already been moved the previous year.
The district decided in Shaker Heights, Ohio stage Latin out of middle school entirely — removed grade by grade over three years — technically kept in high school for now. The high school Latin teacher warned that this wouldn’t be sustainable: Without a middle school feeder, most students simply wouldn’t switch languages.
A 15% of budget cuAcross Denver Public Schools, Latin is at risk at Riverside High School, where teachers point out that a lack of Latin in middle school is already contributing to low high school enrollment.
The elimination of Latin in secondary school is the death knell for the language. Middle school Latin drops first due to low enrollment, which then makes high school Latin unsustainable, creating a self-reinforcing decline; About 80% of students who study Latin in middle school continue it in high school.
So language is on life support. Only 1,513 public high schools teach Latin out of a total of 24,000 high schools – approx. 6% Schools are just public schools; Private and Catholic schools make the numbers even higher, but a broader collective picture is not accurately tracked. Estimates put total K–12 Latin enrollment at about 210,000 students, which is approx 2% All students studying a foreign language.
This decline is not new: Latino students in high school have dropped by about 700,000 in the past year 150,000 in 1962 to 1976Mainly because of the post-Sputnik push towards math and science. More recently, Advanced Placement Latin test takers dropped from 6,083 in 2019 to 4,336 in 2025, suggesting a continued erosion at the advanced level.
This is bad for English speakers, because Latin forms the root of about two-thirds of English vocabulary, especially advanced words used in science, law, and literature. For school-related vocabulary, the figure is 90%. Latin studies can strengthen reading comprehension, which is why some schools still offer the course.
It is time to tackle the real reason why Latin studies are in decline without much concern from many scholars: the elitism debate.
The classics have always had an elitist image — classical knowledge has historically been a hallmark of the genteel — and parochial and private schools maintain classical standards more than most public schools. This difference in proposition is greatest in the UK: only 3% of schools in the state offer Latin vs. 49% Private schools.
In the United States, Latin is particularly concentrated in certain types of schools: elite independent prep schools — such as Exeter, Andover, and Groton — and Catholic secondary schools where it is often required.
But a A third type of school Breaking that loop: Charter schools. They show how to keep Latin alive. Classical Charter School The South Bronx offers one of the fewest congressional districts in the United States to offer a tuition-free education, with Latin at the core of the curriculum. Latin instruction begins There is third classDesigned not as prestige-building but as a practical tool: improving English grammar, spelling, vocabulary and readiness to learn other languages. The idea is to flip the script: give low-income kids the same linguistic tools that elite schools have always stocked.
Latin critics point out that no one speaks the language but this is not exactly true. Linguists like Tim Pulju argue that Latin never really stopped being spoken – it continued in Italy, Gaul, Spain and elsewhere. evolves slowlyWithin the Romance languages for several centuries g. There is one important difference: the classical Latin of Cicero and Virgil may have stagnated and died colloquially, but the vulgar Latin—what ordinary Romans actually spoke—evolved into what we now call Italian, French, Spanish, Portuguese, and Romanian.
For Latino students in particular, Latin can be constructed as the root of their own language, not a foreign elitist artifact but something ancestral and relevant.
Latin is very much alive but pushing it. Presenting it as an equity tool rather than a classical tradition can change who sees themselves as a potential Latin student and change the curriculum – and life.
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This is the story is produced by 74A nonprofit, independent news organization focused on education in America.
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