Hello HS East Community, It is hard to believe we are near the halfway point in the 2010-2011 school year. As Quarter 2 comes to a close most students and teachers will begin preparing for January midterm exams. Students should study for these exams and give their best effort because in addition to most midterms counting for 20% of the second quarter grade, they are a good indication of performance on final and Regents exams. Results on these exams also inform teachers of topics to revisit as the year progresses. There is a lot of good news to share about our students and staff here at HS East as you will see in the fol-lowing pages. Our teachers are engaging students in meaningful, unique learning experiences which are preparing our students to be successful in the 21st Century. Students are excelling in academics, the arts and athletics! Also, as is always the case, our extracurricular clubs and organizations are providing oppor-tunities for our students to develop into well-rounded, contributing members of society. Although we are still entrenched in this school year, preparations for the upcoming school year are under way as well. Students have been presented with electives, received recommendations from their teachers and are meeting with their counselors to finalize their class choices for next year. The student/parent por-tal is now open to enter course requests for 2011-2012. Be sure to use this opportunity to discuss educa-tional matters as a family. As always we thank the Board of Education, the Superintendent and Central Office Staff, the High School East PTSA and, of course, the parents of our community for making it possible for us to provide the best educational experience for our students. Remember: Respect, Responsibility and Excellence! Dr. J. A. Woodberry Principal, HS East

A Special Message from Dr. Woodberry

HALF HOLLOW HILLS

HIGH SCHOOL EAST

PRINCIPAL’S

NEWSLETTER

January 14, 2011 Volume II , Issue II

Perspectives

The Insider’s View

• Holiday Cheer

• 21st Century Learning projects in the class-room and beyond

• Fall athletic teams receive honors

Inside this issue:

Page 2 A New Kind of Kwan-zaa Celebration

Page 6 Spirit Week and Winter Pep Rally

Page 7 Art Installation 2011

Page 8 Fall Sports Wrap Up and Winter Sports Victories

Recycling for Charity

Student Government has initiated a recycling pro-gram for deposit water bottles and cans. Aneesh Shah, a junior class officer, is spearheading the pro-gram which aims to increase environ-mental awareness among the student body while also giving back to the com-munity through charitable contribu-tions. Rather than adding to the waste stream, students will collect deposit bot-tles and cans from the classrooms and cafeteria at High School East and return them weekly to collect the deposits. All the money will be used to benefit Long Island charities.

The recycling plan is already off to a great start. The green boxes, decorated

by Student Government members, were distributed to classrooms January 3rd. Each day, student volun-teers, including students from our IPC program, help to collect the contents. Aneesh and his team will continue their campaign throughout the school year.

HS East Gets Greener

Page 2 Perspectives

Holiday Cheer 2010

Shopping Mates On December 18th, the HS East Key Club, advised by Jeninne O’Callaghan and Jennifer Werle, participated in the annual Sears Shopping Tour, funded by the Huntington Kiwanis Club. The students helped fifty underprivileged chil-dren from the Huntington Boys and Girls Club shop for winter coats, shoes, and Christmas presents with a gift card provided by the Kiwanians. HS East students wrapped the gifts, so the children could open presents from “Santa” on Christmas Day.

Kwanzaa Celebration African American Student Organiza-tion’s Annual Kwanzaa Program took place on Wednesday, December 22nd, in the B/C cafeteria. Kwanzaa is an African American non-religious holi-day that celebrates family, community and culture. The celebration takes place annually from December 26th to

January 1st and takes its origins from the “first fruits” harvest celebrations of Africa. The featured guest speaker for this year’s cele-bration was Professor Nor-man Daniels, Coordinator of Multicultural Affairs at

Suffolk Commu-nity College’s Grant Campus. Professor Daniels edified the audience by guiding them through a traditional Kwanzaa cere-mony (as time permitted) highlighting the Nugo Saba or seven principles of Unity (Umoja), Self-Determination (Kujichagulia), Collective Work and Responsibility (Ujima), Cooperative Eco-nomics (Ujamaa), Purpose

(Nia), and Faith (Imani). The

event included featured African drum-mers and poetry reading. After the ceremony, attendees en-joyed the Karamu or Kwanzaa feast. All in attendance enjoyed the presen-tation, festivities and the time to gather with friends. —article by Charese Cunningham

African-American Student Organization members with advisor Charese Cunningham.

A Day of

Comfort and Joy Hills East students entertained the students of James E. Allen School with joyful tunes, ener-getic dances and exciting cheer-leading routines. This yearly tradition brightens the season for our performers as well as their audience as they share the g rea t-est gift: t h e i r talent.

Volume 1I , Issue II Page 3

Holiday Cheer 2010

Architecture Elves Students of The Architecture Club decided to help a family in need this year through St. Patrick's Church, CDA, in Huntington, N.Y. Knowing that the family has two little girls, the students designed, constructed, and painted a castle style doll house. In addition, they de-signed and constructed unique furniture for the various rooms of the castle. They purchased the construction materials and dolls for the house through funds raised through bake sales.

In addition, Anthony Daleo and family donated 5 boxes of toys. Some of the toys will accompany the doll house and go to the CDA family and the remaining toys will be donated to the Ronald McDonald House along with the second doll house. The members of the architecture club have worked tirelessly on their off periods, after school and at club meetings to ensure the success of their en-deavor. Mrs. Mead is very proud of her elves and the services that they have provided for their community.

21st Century Learning

Page 4 Perspectives

Interdisciplinary Success

The spirit of 21st century learning has brought together the art and history departments. Mrs. Norris (art) and Mr. Scorcia

(social studies) c o m b i n e d forces to help Mr. Scorcia’s class to make plaster masks of historical fig-ures. Students were given the freedom to pick any person from the 9th grade curricu-lum and design

a mask however they see fit. These masks were not simple life-like portraits, but rather interpretive pieces that reflect the contributions to society made by their particular person. Stu-dent time in the art room was spent executing their designs,

painting, using images and everything else in Mrs. Norris’ room. Collaboration, communication, creativity and adaptability are all part of the core values of 21st learning and were incorporated seamlessly in this wonderful collaborative effort. Remember, “Information doesn’t produce good learning anymore than paint produces good art!” — Article contributed by Anthony Scorcia

Community Development

Upon completion of the Ecology and Biome units, students in Ms. Goodenough’s AP Environmental Science class were given a map of a hypothetical region called Muirtown. The area con-tained fresh water estuaries, desert and old growth forest re-gions. Students were then challenged to develop a community that would accommodate 10,000 people. They were in-structed as to how much space would be needed for necessi-ties such as housing, public institutions, health facilities and fire/police departments. The students were also responsible for providing areas to put utilities for water, power and sewage treatment. Another consideration was to decide how much

agricultural space and industry to incorporate as well as areas for recrea-tion. Using their knowl-edge of ecosystems, stu-dents determined either how much space to use in each or whether to build in the area at all. Once their community development plan was complete, students pre-sented their proposal to the class, which was set up as a town legislative

panel to decide which plan was best for the people and the environment. A panel of three peers questioned each pre-senter before opening it up to the rest of the “town legisla-ture”. One panel member Sarah Sampino said, “Listening to the many ideas my classmates had and having to choose a plan that was both success-ful and environ-mentally con-scious made me realize just how difficult a job leg-islators have.” While students thought the project was difficult, they reveled in the challenge. Alex Devarajan said, “I really liked the planning project because it was fun to be an architect of the whole town. I also loved the practicality of it, and the use of a committee was great. It was a good form of peer review, and it was fun to see who won.” Classmate Lawrence Wolf-Sonkin said, “This project really made me think and analyze any possible way of protect-ing biomes and being efficient.” —contributed by Terese Goodenough

Page 5 Volume II , Issue II

21st Century Learning Literature Games

Students in Ms. Burnett’s English 9 Honors have been busy making literature come alive with a student-designed inde-pendent reading project. Students read either The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho or The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart. Every Friday, students met to discuss their chosen book in literature circles. As a culmination, Ms. Burnett presented students with a list of criteria such as: representation of changes in story line and representation of a solid understanding of the novel. They could not give away the ending, however, since they will read the other novel. Students then brainstormed with their group members to design and execute their project. Their imaginations ignited, they created masks, maps, a beautifully illustrated diary, and a board game (featured right with its creators).

Teen with a Cause Many times, 21st Century learning occurs beyond the class-room, and HS East 10th grader Jonathan Goldsmith is the perfect example. He was honored at a press conference this past October for helping to develop the National Organiza-tion for Women’s Safety Awareness, Inc.’s (NOWSA’s) “Covers for a Cause” teen personal safety awareness cam-paign. Jonathan was also a key player in getting a bill signed to implement “Teen Personal Safety Awareness Week” in the State of New York. He met with assemblymen, sena-tors, and news people and his story was in Newsday, on

1055 News, and various radio shows. The book covers feature safety measures for teens and will also be distributed here at East for use on all student textbooks. Not only has Jonathan exemp l i f i ed soc i a l awareness, but an entre-preneurial spirit as well.

Inquiry and Imagination Mr. Grunbeck and his AP Physics B and Honors Physics students have been busy testing theory through hands on projects that challenge students’ critical thinking and problem solving skills. There was the annual Spaghetti Contest for the Honors students and the Egg Drop Contest for the AP students. All classes participate annually in the chari-table Can Rolling Contest—students bring in at least two cans of food. The cans are chosen so that when allowed to roll down an inclined plane onto a flat floor, the winning can will roll far-ther than any other can. Students apply their knowledge of rotational inertia in order to choose the cans. The cans must also be tested so that they roll straight and do not turn. Mr. Grunbeck then collects the cans in the classroom

and brings them to the St. Hugh’s Parish Outreach Program Food Bank in Hunt-ington Station. This activity teaches physics along with social responsibility. Most impressive was the AP Physics B Torque Mobile Project. This was the first year for this chal-lenging activity. Stu-dents were required to design and con-struct an art mobile around a general theme (a holiday theme is featured right) using physics to calculate the mobile’s translational and rota-tional equilibrium. After selecting the items for their mo-biles, students had to

calculate the mass of each, measure distances, draw a blueprint, verify the equilibrium, and voila! A perfect mobile! Actually, it sounds much easier than reality. Students stuck with it, however, and created fun, artistic and well-balanced mobiles.

Page 6 Perspectives

Spirit Week and Winter Pep Rally 2010 Spirit Week set the tone for Pep Rally and the winter break as stu-dents and faculty alike got in the spirit on Jersey Day, Pajama Day, Twin Day and Spirit Day. The Winter Pep Rally, held on December 23, 2010, was another success with cheers of support for our winter sports teams, outstanding performances, introduction of our new Expressive Move-ment Club and another pie in the face for a good cause. This year, JV Football coach, Mr. DiMoulas won the honor of receiving the pie which was delivered by Cody Burns. All proceeds from the Pie Wars donations will go to Cody and his family. For more exciting photos see the Media Gallery on the HS East web-page.

Page 7 Volume II , Issue II

There’s No Place Like Home—Art Installation 2011

Allyson Uttendorfer’s AP Art History students have worked hard on their 2011 installation There’s No Place Like Home. This year’s theme brings atten-tion to the necessity of recycling and how there is beauty everywhere. They hope to aid students and faculty alike in seeing that a piece of recyclable mate-rial can actually be used in innumerable ways, repurposed as art, and that its journey doesn’t end once it’s placed into a recycling bin. Students found inspiration from contemporary artist Bart Vargas. He created sculptures called E-Waste and One Man’s Trash and utilizes materials that have been deemed trash and transforms them into modern art treasures. Ms. Uttendorfer and her students created a room, a basic living room, where most people relax, watch television and reflect on life. The contents of the room are made from the top ten materials that need to be recycled: Newspaper into curtains and a television, cardboard into a couch, magazines into a coffee table, plastic bags into a weaved rug, plastic bottles into a chandelier, glass into a functioning lamp, aluminum cans into a mirror, steel cans into a fireplace, bat-teries into a clock, and computers into a bookshelf. Each piece of trash has taken on a completely new function and

is unified by the notion of recycling. Home is where we generate most of our waste; so creating a room that is typically a warm and comfortable space out of raw recyclables will hopefully make a statement to viewers. It is an unfortunate truth that we live in an extraordinarily wasteful time. In North America, up to 99% of goods are no longer in use six months after their purchase. The United States in particu-lar uses 30% of the world’s resources and creates 30% of the world’s waste.

The average U.S. person now consumes twice as much as they did 50 years ago; each of us produces approximately four and a half pounds of garbage a day! Now more than ever the importance of the recycling should be brought to at-tention so we can hopefully make a change for the future. For more photos see the Media Gal-lery on the HS East webpage. —article by Allyson Uttendorfer

Scholar in the Footlights Every day, after a morning of rigorous academic work, Nicole Altchiler boards the bus to the Long Island High School for the Arts in order to develop and refine skills in her artistic passion: dance. Her hard work has paid off and Hills East is proud to acknowledge Nicole’s commendation as one of two scholar artists for the month of Febru-ary. The Scholar-Artist program is spon-sored by the Long Island Arts Alliance. Students are selected in music, visual arts, dance, theater, and media arts. Nicole will be featured in Newsday this

February and she was rec-ognized at an annual event at the Tilles Center for the Performing Arts, as well as at our Board of Education meeting earlier this school year, along with visual art-ist Julia Lerner (featured in the October issue of Per-spectives). We at HS East extend our congratulations and pride in Nicole’s academic and artistic achievement!

High School East 50 Vanderbilt Parkway Dix Hills, NY 11746

Produced by: Darlene Lilla

Assistant Principal Phone: 631-592-3128

Fax: 631-592-3121 E-mail:

dlilla@hhh.k12.ny.us

HALF HOLLOW HILLS

HIGH SCHOOL EAST

PRINCIPAL’S NEWSLETTER

High School East

Visit Our Website: www.halfhollowhills.k12.ny.us

Sports Highlights The Fall season culminated with victories and honors. Featured here are just a few of the many highlights of our stand out athletes. The three time defending champion Boys’ Vol-leyball team had an outstanding 19-0 season and topped it off with a first ever Long Island Cham-pionship and qualification for State Finals. Boys’ Varsity Soccer had a successful season, making it to the playoffs. Soccer players also received awards: All-league went to Jordan Gross, Kevin Dorn, and Harrison Marx; All Conference went to Jimmy Reiser, Robby Reiser, and Jake Free-man; All County went to Jimmy Reiser; and Aca-demic All County went to Dominic Akerele. The Girls’ Tennis team also had an excellent season with Samantha Elgort selected as All-State Tennis Player. Bari Padover and Danielle Stansky were honored as gymnasts on the All-State Gymnastics Team. Faculty and students came out en masse for the first annual HHH Wellness Fair 5K run. HS East student Greg Perrier took top student honors, science teacher Christian Fogarazzo placed first among faculty, and Dr. Woodberry took first place among administration. At this year’s Suffolk Zone awards, Morgan Donovan and Mason Thorbjornsen were hon-ored with the Excellence in Physical Education

A w a r d . The Suf-folk Zone of The

New York State Association of Physical Educa-tion, Recreation, and Dance gives an annual award to two deserving seniors (male and fe-male) who excel in physical education class as well as in the entire school setting. Chosen by the physical education faculty, these students must earn an A in all years of high school in physical education, must have at least a 3.0 aver-age overall by their junior year, possess out-standing character in physical education, must participate in school wide activities, and be posi-tive role models. Finally, Hills East was honored once again with all Fall teams qualifying for the Scholar Athlete Team Award presented by NYSPHSAA. So far, the winter season is looking good as well with wrestling already boasting of tourna-ment victories. At our annual Hills East Wres-tling Tournament over the winter break, senior Anthony Abidin took first place in the 125lb weight class. He finished the tournament with a pin in the finals over Broccoli from Westhamp-ton Beach. Anthony also received the tourna-ment’s “Most Pins in Least Amount of Time” award with four pins in seven minutes and forty seconds. Perhaps the wrestling team is fired up by the wrestling room makeover. Art Club, Na-tional Art Honor Society, Bill Davey, Kim Nor-ris, Allyson Uttendorfer and painter Luke Diorio teamed up to give the room a new face. Enjoy more photos on the website in Awards and Honors as well as the Media Gallery.