Schools' Principal Maria Bakalidou and Dr Nick Dallas, with others from the program. Photo: Supplied

Scholarships, an Open Day and a Xavier College partnership headline a five-year plan to grow the subject in Victorian schools

The Greek Community of Melbourne (GCM) has just launched a long-term strategy to keep Classical Greek alive, accessible and sustainable across Victorian secondary schools, backed by new scholarships, a school outreach campaign and a partnership with Xavier College.

Classical Greek will continue to be taught from Year 7 through to VCE and remains open to students from any school across Victoria.

“The future of Classical Greek in Victoria requires collaboration, careful planning and long-term investment,” said GCM Schools Principal Maria Bakalidou.

“We don’t simply want to keep a subject alive because of its historical significance. We want more young people to have the opportunity to discover this language, its ideas and the texts that have had such a profound influence on the modern world.”

The program carries deep personal significance for Bakalidou. It was established, she said, “through the vision, dedication and persistence of our much-loved teacher, Alexandros Giannadakis,” who built Classical Greek within the Greek Community Schools before his unexpected death in 2024.

Students ready to learn. Photo: Supplied

His untimely death she added “was a great loss to our school community.”

“Continuing and growing this program is also a way for us to honour his memory and carry forward the work he began.”

GCM Education Committee Chair Dr Nick Dallas said the new initiatives reflect a genuine, sustained commitment rather than a short-term push.

“This is not a one-year initiative,” Dallas said. “We are committed to continuing to offer Classical Greek from Year 7 through to VCE and, above all, to ensuring that every student who genuinely wants to study the language has the opportunity to do so.

“To achieve sustainability and ensure the growth of Classical Greek, we need to build interest from the younger years, support families where needed, and invest in the partnerships that will make the program sustainable in the long term.”

A thriving environment for learning. Photo: Supplied

Scholarships and Open Day

A new scholarship program, funded by the Australian Institute for Macedonian Studies (AIMS) on the initiative of Professor Anastasios Tamis, will support Classical Greek students over the next five years. The scholarships are established in memory of Panagiotis Liveriadis. The GCM said it will keep seeking further partnerships and funding so cost is never a barrier to entry.

The community will hold a Classical Greek Open Day at the Greek Centre on Saturday, September 19. Families will meet teachers, learn about the pathway from introductory classes to VCE, and find out about scholarships and free trial classes. Students will get a hands-on taste of the subject, including its links to Modern Greek, English, philosophy, science and history.

Into the schools

A new campaign will take Classical Greek directly into Melbourne secondary schools. GCM educators, alongside teacher Miltiadis Paikopoulos and Bakalidou, will run presentations and activities on the subject’s influence on language, science and philosophy, aiming to challenge common misconceptions. Interested students will then be invited to free trial classes at the Greek Centre, with no obligation to enrol.

An ancient Greek inscription, from the Metropolitan Museum in NYC, written on a cartonnage mummy case featuring the jackal-headed god Anubis, detailing personal or genealogical data in uncial letters from Roman-period Egypt. Photo: Supplied

Partnering with Xavier College

The GCM is building a formal collaboration with Xavier College. Bakalidou and Dallas have met with Xavier College Director of Learning Monique Dalli to discuss joint curriculum development, shared teaching resources and closer cooperation between Classical Greek teachers at both institutions. The GCM says the subject’s future depends on cooperation between schools, teachers, universities, families and the wider community.

The “AGON” initiative

The strategy also includes “AGON,” a new action group founded by Paikopoulos that brings together teachers, parents, academics and government representatives to coordinate support for Classical Studies across Victoria.

Together, the scholarships, Open Day, trial classes, school outreach, Xavier College partnership and AGON initiative form the first steps of a broader plan. The GCM’s goal, it said, is simple: no student in Victoria who wants to study Classical Greek should be denied the opportunity to do so.

Students and families interested in the scholarships, Open Day, trial classes or the Classical Greek program are encouraged to contact the Greek Community of Melbourne Schools for further information.

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Greek Community of Melbourne commits to the future of Classical Greek education