The Academy Vivarium Novum (or Accademia in Italian) has a reputation as the only college in the world where students can spend one or more years immersed in Latin and Ancient Greek. These languages are spoken both in and outside of the classroom. The academy is directed by Luigi Miraglia, who according to the New Yorker magazine "speaks Latin more fluently than almost anyone else alive".

The Academy Vivarium Novum was founded in order to restore the great tradition of the Renaissance schools, their teaching methods, and the free and critical vision of the world that such an education fosters. The Academy is founded on the firm conviction that dignity (dignitas hominis) may be attained only by continuous self-examination. The students of the Academy Vivarium Novum are dedicated to the pursuit of a comprehensive grasp of the Latin and Ancient Greek languages.

The name Vivarium Novum recalls the proto-humanistic community of Cassiodorus, Theodoric's magister officiorum. Vivarium was a place where liberal arts and lofty aspiration coincided; at the same time it evokes the isle of Vivara located in the Bay of Naples, where the idea of a school prepared to offer an advanced education to future generations was first conceived.

Admissions

Pupils from sixteen to twenty-five years of age, already in possession of the fundamentals of Latin grammar and a solid foundation of vocabulary, are admitted to the Academy. Room, board and classes are all completely free (as of the 2010-2011 academic year), sustained through scholarships from the Mnemosyne foundation. Each year no more than forty students are accepted.

Since during the winter the building is shared with some seminarists, the school can not accept women; from the medium of june to beginning of october, both male and female students can attend classes.

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