PHS BAND PROGRAM CONTINUES TO SHINE

May 11, 2017 Volume 2 Issue 8

1515 Stelton Road

Piscataway, NJ 08854

Phone: 732-572-2289

www.piscatawayschools.org

Twitter: @pwayschools

Facebook: @pwayschools

The PHS Music Program continues to thrive and be an important part of the high school experi-

ence for so many students. And for many of these students, one of the favorite band events is

the band trip. This year, the trip to Boston from April 5-8 produced exceptional results. In addi-

tion to performing, students took part in other cultural activities, including attending a Boston

Pops concert; visiting the Boston Museum of Science, the JFK Memorial Library, and the Witch

Museum in Salem, MA. The competition that included performances by our four PHS groups was,

of course most important,

and the ratings results

were outstanding:

Concert Band: “Excellent”

Color Guard: “Excellent”

Wind Ensemble:

“Superior,” first place,

and the William Revelli

Concert Band award for

Best Overall Concert Band

Jazz Band: “Superior,”

first place, Best Overall Jazz Band, and Best Jazz Soloist for trombonist Dalton Mooring

Of even greater importance – the PHS students conducted themselves with maturity and

integrity, representing the best of PHS.

PHS STUDENTS RECOGNIZED IN

CONGRESSIONAL ART AWARDS Congressman Frank Pallone recognized four PHS students in an

annual art competition sponsored by the US House of

Representatives. The Artistic Discovery Contest encourages and

recognizes the talents of students nationwide. Within New Jersey’s

Sixth Congressional District, PHS student Christine Papanier took

first place, for Beauty Regimen, Neha

Patel took second place for In the Light,

and two students received honorable

mentions: Nira Gabriel for Cutting My

Identity and Mariah Pierre for Reflection.

Christine’s artwork, Beauty Regimen, will

be displayed in the US Capitol Building in

Washington DC for one year.

Above, Christine

Papnaier’s

Beauty

Regimen. Left:

Neha Patel’s

In the Light.

Superintendent’s Report

GRANDVIEW STUDENTS DONATE TO OTHERS IN NEED Just after finishing a food drive to support the local food bank, Grandview students helped

to organize a Coins for Kids collection for UNICEF, supporting the crisis in South Sudan,

where 8 million people need humanitarian assistance, more than half of whom are

children. Third graders listened to The Water Princess by Susan Verde and read What is

Water Worth? to gain a deepened sense of appreciation for the value of access to clean

drinking water. Then they helped collect, sort, and roll the coins donated by Grandview

students. As a result Grandview will donate $325 to help the children of

South Sudan. Then, from April 3rd –April 7th, Grandview School students

participated in the American Heart Association’s Jump Rope for Heart

during Physical Education classes. Students learned how to jump rope

and practiced their new skills. The students raised a total of $1,659.41

that will assist with research and educational programs for

cardiovascular disease, stroke, and reducing the alarming trend of

childhood obesity.

Page 2

ERICCSON HOSTS PHS STUDENTS FOR

INTERNATIONAL GIRLS IN ICT DAY

On Thursday, April 27, Ericcson’s Piscataway campus hosted 12 girls from PHS as

part of International Girls in ICT Day. The worldwide event is celebrated in over

150 countries and is designed to provide outreach and information to girls about

STEM and careers in Information and Communications Technology. The students

represented a cross section of PHS; several of the girls are involved with the LIFT

(Ladies of Inspiration, Fortitude, and Talent) mentoring program, whose mentors

were integral to the planning of the event. During their visit, the students

worked with professionals at Ericsson on team-building assignments, and design

workshops. They met with many talented women exploring the corporate work

environment and learning about the many roles women play in the company.

PISCATAWAY ATHLETES SCORE COLLEGE SCHOLARSHIPS

Piscataway Athletes continue to score throughout the school year, as

more than 20 of these team-focused students scored college scholarships

and will play college-level sports as they earn their Bachelors Degree.

Students who recently signed letters of agreement include: Justin

McKeown for Baseball at Bloomfield College; Antonia Simunek for

Swimming at Rowan University; Anthony Ciancio for

Football at Stevenson University; Daniel Haus for

Football at Mulenberg University; Michael Stalenyj for

Football at University of New Haven; Chinonye Gabriel

for Tennis at Monmouth University; and Terrell

Hagans for Football at Norwich University.

Congratulations to these student athletes!

PHS KEY CLUB RECOGNIZED FOR SERVICE

Key Club is an international student-led organization that provides members with

opportunities to provide service, build character and develop leadership. At PHS,

both student members and advisors reach out to serve their school and

community. Their work and achievements were recently honored with several

awards and distinctions at the district convention held from March 31-April 2 in

Long Branch: Eileen Zhu - Robert F Lucas Distinguished Lieutenant Governor

2016-17, $1000 NJ District of Key Club Scholarship; Kristen Nyampong -

Distinguished President, Impromptu Essay 3rd Place, Lieutenant Governor Division 6

2017-18; Nic Bagwandeen - Distinguished Vice President; Birju Dhaduk -

Distinguished Treasurer; Angel Nguyen - Distinguished Secretary; Eileen Chen - Club

Website 2nd Place, Distinguished Webmaster; Aracelly Almerco - Golden Member

Award ; Mr. Mitchell Fuhr - Robert J Mascenick Kiwanis Faculty Advisor of the Year.

Volume 2 Issue 8 Page 3

LAURA LEIBOWITZ HONORED

CONACKAMACK SERVICE, LEADERSHIP, CHARACTER, CITIZENSHIP

On Wednesday, April 5, the Conackamack National Junior Honor Society

travelled to the Community Food Bank in Hillside, NJ., an organization whose

mission is "to fight hunger by assisting those in need and seeking long-term

solutions." Every weekend the Community Food Bank provides family packs --

bags full of supplemental, nutritious food for hungry children and their families.

The food bank also provides boxes filled with cereals, fruits and vegetables,

milk, proteins, and much more for senior citizens. Working together, the NJHS

assembled over 500 packages for senior citizens and over 460 packages for

school-aged youth. They also prepared and organized the shipments to schools,

senior centers, and homes of those in need. All members of the Conackamack

National Junior Honor Society were inspired by the services offered by the

Community Food Bank, grateful to have the opportunity to volunteer for an

important cause, and motivated to engage in continuous philanthropy.

JERSEY CARES COMES TO

PISCATAWAY On Friday, June 16, 125 volunteers from L’Oreal, Piscataway

will descend upon

Conackamack and King

Schools for a day of

service. Coordinated by

the nonprofit Jersey

Cares, volunteers will take part in a number of projects, from

beautification, to leading STEM workshops, to creating

summer fun project packets. As part of its mission, Jersey

Cares makes it easier for corporate employees to volunteer

in their communities, and Piscataway is grateful for the

opportunity to work with them.

PHS teacher Ms. Laura Leibowitz

received an achievement award

from the AttachAviAutism

Foundation on behalf of her

work with children and families

with special needs. The award

was presented at the

AttachAviAutism Second Annual

We’ve Got Talent Too Fashion

and Talent show on Sunday April

2, World Autism Awareness Day,

in the PHS PAC.

GLOW FOR A CURE ON MAY 20 PISCATAWAY CODES! Piscataway offers its first “Learn

to Code” event for students in

Grades 4-8 on Saturday, May

20, from 8:45am to 3:00pm at

PHS. Students will learn new

skills in gaming and animation

through collaboration, applied

logic, problem solving and

computational technology. Led

by PHS Computer Science

teacher, Brinder Soin, this is another project funded through

a Piscataway Education Foundation Inspire Grant.

Piscataway will light

up the night on

Saturday, May 20,

when runners and

walkers take to the

PHS track to Glow for

a Cure. The race

around the 2.5 mile course begins at 9pm and includes glow

sticks, bright colors and great music. The cost is $10 for students

and $20 for adults with all proceeds benefiting the Rutgers Cancer

Institute of New Jersey. Come out to support a great cause!

BEST OF THE BOARDWALK JUNE 5

On Monday, June 5, from

5:30pm—7:30 pm, join the

Piscataway Education

Foundation on the PHS Loop

Road for Best of the Boardwalk,

an end of the year event

featuring family fun and

fantastic boardwalk food! Sink a

teacher in the dunk tank, play in

the bounce house or at one of

the new boardwalk-style games,

and enjoy a meal of burgers,

dogs, sausage and peppers, ice cream, hot pretzels and more.

Tickets available at the door: Adults $8, students $5.

FUEL UP TO PLAY 60 SUMMIT

For the fifth year in a row,

students from Quibbletown

will represent the State of NJ

this summer at the Fuel Up

To Play 60 Student

Ambassador summit. The

event will take place in

Minneapolis, Minnesota in

late July. Quibbletown Eighth

Graders Viren Asrani and Veena Limbachiya have been named

NJ State Ambassadors and will attend the summit, working

alongside CEOs from several health and physical activity

organizations. They will travel with their program advisor,

James Overton, who is one of the spokespersons for the FUTP

60 National Hero Campaign.

When Michael Soskind from the Rutgers Engineering Club reached out to establish a

connection between engineering students at Rutgers and students at Schor, Teacher

Brittany Gentul and Principal Richard Hueston answered with an enthusiastic yes! The

connection began by identifying 30 eighth grade students who were interested in the

"Introduction to Engineering" course for their freshman year of high school. These

students took part in an afternoon of engineering that included building with batteries,

motors, decorations, adhesives, and structural pieces so

Schor students could make a motorized gizmo named "beebop." The

Rutgers students also discussed their studies, different possibilities

within engineering fields, and what they plan for their own futures. As

an added bonus, PHS Engineering Teacher Charlie Giacomarra

attended the event, setting up a station to show examples of student

work, including a student-built robot, and to give a first-hand account

of PHS engineering courses.

RUTGERS STUDENTS BRING ENGINEERING TO SCHOR