LEONIA -- Latin may be a dead language, but a Leonia High School teacher is using the classical language to entertain students and maybe win a cover song video contest.

Keith Massey, 49, of Roxbury, teaches Latin at Leonia High School. He regularly creates videos of himself performing Latin versions of popular songs.

He's entered his latest effort, a cover of "Hello" by Adele, into the Illustrated Sound Network's Pop Unplugged Cover Song Video Contest.

Massey's previous Latin covers, posted on his website, include "Jingle Bells," "Hello - Goodbye" and "Do You Want to Build a Snowman." According to the site, he was born in Wisconsin and studied Latin and Classical Greek at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Before becoming a teacher, he served four years as an Arabic translator for the the National Security Agency, including a stint in Iraq.

Massey told the Daily Record a friend at the NSA brought the song contest to his attention. He chose "Hello" because his students would know the song, and because "hello" is a basic phrase his students should know.

As of Wednesday, the video has 2,500 views. The winners are announced March 29, and could win a prize of $250.

Myles Ma may be reached at mma@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MylesMaNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.