In the wake of the school violence in Connecticut, the students in grades six to eight met with the administrators and social workers to be reassured and learn about safety strategies at the school. The day started with the superintendent addressing the younger students in Spirit Meet with the message of love and family in the school.
As part of the school’s ongoing partnership with the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project, literacy coordinators Ryan Scala and Tracey Frazier welcomed a recent visit to follow up on the reading and writing workshops as part of the professional development for all the teachers school wide. More programs will follow as part of this on-site partnership.
This year’s yearbook, led by new advisors Valerie Policastro and Christen Cleary, will have a new look. Some of the student editors, which include Alex Vecchio, Danielle Futerman, Hanna Rosario, Tiffany Gutamo, Kerrie McCafferty, Luke Valentine, Kasey Brabant, and Gabby Arevolo, have added a hard cover, more color photos, creative writing, and a printed signature page. To cover the additional cost, they have organized a series of bake sales.
Student Kate Walter is the new “treasurer” of the water machine under the guidance of Sue Ellen O’Connor. A group of volunteer students stock the machine and manage the small profits to pay for supplies for the courtyard, mostly birdseed.
The academic enrichment program maintains a wiki website called “aepcool” attached to the newly designed school website that provides for interaction among the students and the teacher. The wiki is open to 75 student writers with themes added each month. So far, the “AEP Cool Kids” have been Sophie Kiembock, Bella Tarbet, Ariani Islami, Eva Wojtusiak, Madison Lappin and Jessie Branche. All teachers at the school now have new websites with their photographs and descriptions of their subjects as well as helpful information on the their courses and calendars.
Ray Wojtusiak organized student elections with speeches presented by the candidates. This year’s student council president is Erick Lopez. The vice president is Tiffany Gutama as his assistant with Hannah Rosario as the treasurer/secretary.
The junior high students meet every Wednesday as part of an after-school art club with Colleen McGowan. Serious art students have the chance to follow an intensive study in a medium of their choice. Film animation, sculpture, painting and Japanese Manga drawing are some of the topics being explored in this two-hour weekly program.
Eighth-grader Andrew Wilson was chosen in a lottery to receive two tickets to the presidential inaugural swearing–in ceremony in Washington D.C. Andrew noted that his teachers piqued his interest in American history and civic participation.
on Dec 29, 2012