Cameron Cozzi Each year, Latin hosts one of two biennial events: either the Auction or the Scholarship Dinner. This year Latin will be hosting the Scholarship Dinner. The theme? Romans of Chicago. Considering that the students are often out of the loop in terms of Latin’s adult fundraisers, many often ask “What are the purpose of these events?”. Both the Auction and the Scholarship Dinner are events focused on raising as much money as possible for the school, but the Scholarship Dinner aims to raise money specifically for the scholarships that Latin provides to many of its students. According to the Latin School website, Latin hopes to raise “over $1 million to contribute to Latin’s financial aid budget of $3.7 million”.  The school raises this money through a live auction held at the school at the beginning of the night, and each of the items auctioned off are donated by Latin families. Parents have the opportunity to bid on all sorts of things, from unique culinary experiences to magnificent overseas vacations. This year the items that are up for grabs include:

• A stay at a 6,700 acre private ranch in Utah for up to 8 guests

• A private dinner for 12 at your home cooked by Fabio Viviani, the winner of “Top Chef: New York, Season 5”

• A stay at a 16th century Tuscan villa for 12 with the inclusion of a private chef

• The opportunity for a student’s grade to face off against Mr. Dunn in a game of bubble-soccer

There is also a raffle in which parents can buy tickets for $25 for a chance to win a 2016 CLA Mercedes. After the raffle, the parents disperse to have dinner at the homes of various Latin families. Each year, dozens of families volunteer their time, money, and homes to host a dinner for the families of students in their child’s grade. These dinners help raise money for an incredibly worthy cause, and a Latin parent expressed her belief that the reason why both the Scholarship Dinner and Auction are so important to the parents of Latin students is because “all Latin parents can agree that [parents] attend, donate, or even host these events because [they] have a strong belief that every kid deserves the opportunity to have a great education”. Throughout the night, the parents eat, socialize, and some dinners even get a special visit from one of Latin’s a-Capella groups, either the Romanettes or the Latones. Overall, these events are vital to the success of Latin as they provide an immense amount of help in raising money for the school.  ]]>