Upper School Newsletter -
May 2010
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UPCOMING ACTIVITIES
Here are the highlights for upcoming events, sponsored
by the Student Activities Committee, and Wyoming Seminary’ Activities
Department.
Friday,
April 23 – Student Auction
Saturday,
May 1 – King of Prussia Mall shopping trip
Saturday, May 8 - Dorney Park and Wildwater Kingdom (Allentown, Pa.)
Friday,
May 21 – Society Day followed by Mind Reader, Robert Channing
the kids liked him so much the first time, we have invited him back!
Saturday,
May 22 – Trip to Six Flags Great Adventure and Wild Safari (New Jersey)
SPRING PERFORMING ARTS CALENDAR
Friday, April 30 – Spring Concert (choral and
instrumental music), 8:00 p.m. Great Hall
Senior
Art Exhibit, 6:00 p.m. Nesbitt Gallery
Friday-Saturday – spring drama: “Letters to the Editor” 8:00 p.m. BPAC;
May 7 & 8 (tickets
$3.00 in advance, $4.00 at the door)
Monday, May 10 – PAI/Civic Symphony Orchestra, 8:00 p.m.
Great Hall
Friday-Saturday – spring dance production,
8:00 p.m. BPAC;
May 14, 15 student
photography exhibit in lobby
Tuesday, May 18 – Wind Ensemble and Jazz Band Concert,
8:00 p.m. BPAC
Friday, May 28 – Senior/Farewell recital, 4:00 p.m.
Great Hall
NEWS
Science Research Group students earn regional awards
Twelve Upper Schools students presented their research
at the recent Northeast Regional Pennsylvania Junior Academy of Science. Award
winners include Michael Kachmar, First Award and a scholarship to the
University of Scranton; Sean Banul, First Award and Excellence Award in Earth
Science; Nathaniel Tucker, First Award and Excellence Award in Computer
Science; Ali Ahmed, First Award; Tachporn Akharaekpanya, First Award, Perfect
Score; Emma Bertram, First Award; Leah Goldberg, First Award; Sergey Ivanov,
First Award; Derek Jacob, Third Award; Adithya Pugazhendhi, First Award; Sonali
Varhade, First Award, Perfect Score; and Zara Zaman, Second Award. All First
Award winners are eligible to participate in the state competition in mid-May.
Sem Stars headline the Third Annual Talent Show
On Friday, March 26, sixteen different student acts took
the stage to showcase their talents before a packed house. The performances ranged
from a violin solo to a hardcore metal band to dance numbers. At the end of the
night, senior Max Cutler (aka Mackadocious aka Macky D) was awarded first place
for his incredible beatboxing (watch the video). Senior Allison Considine earned second place for
her performance of “Stars and Moon” (accompanied by another senior, Sonali
Varhade, on piano). Junior Annie Sjoholm and senior Chelsea Ruane tied for
third. Annie sang a piece she wrote titled “Perfect for Me” and Chelsea sang
“The Only Exception.” Jesse McHugh (senior) accompanied both pieces on guitar.
The entire event was coordinated and directed by senior Brennan Twardowski,
hosted by Ethan Lewis (faculty), judged by faculty members Rev. Charlie
Carrick, Courtney Lewis, and Jane Slaff. The DJ Exclusive was junior Donald
Bradley.
Mock Trial Team earns semi-final finish in state
competition
The Mock Trial team recently reached the semifinal round
of the 2010 State High School Mock Trial Competition, held in Harrisburg March
26-27. This is the first time Sem has reached the semifinal round in state
competition and follows the team’s success in the regional competition held
earlier in March in Scranton.
Sem team members who received Best Advocate Awards
include sophomore Renata O’Donnell, Wilkes-Barre; senior Banner White,
Bethlehem; and junior Dustin Magaziner, Cherry Hill, N.J. Best Witness Awards
were given to junior Lina Bader, Mountain Top, and sophomore Beau Zafrany,
Wilkes-Barre. Learn more about the Mock Trial’s successful season here.
Thank you for supporting the annual auction!
The faculty, students and auction committee members
extend a big thank you to all parents who supported the annual auction. Many of
you made donations, and lots of you placed bids online between March 29 and
April 7, raising money for wishlist items for both Upper and Lower Schools. On
April 9 more than 170 parents attended the gala party and live auction,
enjoying a great meal and the always entertaining auctioneers, Bob Clements and
Loren Grossman. Look for an announcement in the near future with the dollar
amount raised. Thank you, everyone!
Times Leader Honors the Best and Brightest on May 3
Wyoming
Seminary is proud to recognize fourteen students selected as nominees in the
Times Leader “Best and Brightest” scholarship program. This is the tenth year
that a local newspaper will honor seniors in 14 categories, awarding $1,000
college scholarship to each winner.
Sem’s
finalists are:
Allison Considine (Performing Arts)
Amber Gollhardt (Art)
Michael McMullan (Athletics)
Amanda Quick (Journalism)
Other
Sem seniors nominated for Best and Brightest recognition are: John Henry
(Business), Nicholas Strzeletz (Civics), Emily Rogers (English and Literature),
Gina Insalaco (Foreign Language), Greg Barber (Mathematics), Ada Pong (Music),
Banner White (Performing Arts), Imy Akharaekpanya (Science and Environment),
Nate Tucker (Science and Environment) and Max Cutler (Community Service). The
Best and Brightest banquet and ceremony will be held on Monday, May 3 at
Bentley’s (Ashley) starting at 5:30 p.m.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Get your gear here!
http://www.wyomingseminary.org/page.cfm?p=1015
Need a new Sem sweatshirt? Looking for a special gift for your Sem student?
Then check out the new Wyoming Seminary online gear store, where you’ll find
hundreds of items such as t-shirts, hoodies, canvas bags, hats, baby gifts and
even accessories for dogs! All items are customizable with colors and logos of
your choice. Look for the online store link on the front page of the Sem Web
site here.
On Monday April 26, over 180 colleges will be
represented at the annual college fair, held this year at the Woodlands in
Wilkes-Barre. Students, you have been hearing about this fantastic opportunity
from Ms. Lew and the other college counselors. Parents, click here to download
the poster for helpful information. Designed as a public service to benefit
high school sophomores, juniors and their parents, this event is free and open
to the public. No advanced registration is required.
The Opinator is now online!
Read all about student and campus news on the just-launched Opinator Web site:
http://www.theopinator.org
SOPHOMORE PARENTS:
College Guidance News
Director
of College Guidance Harvie Ruggles wants to be sure you know that she recently
met with small groups of sophomores to familiarize them with the college
guidance program at Wyoming Seminary. She gave each sophomore two assignments: to
e-mail his/her college counselor a letter of introduction and to schedule an
individual meeting.
Ruggles
also made sure that each student was able to access his/her Family Connections
account. Family Connections is an interactive Internet portal which allows
student, parent and counselor an easy way to share information. It also offers
college search tools and a free SAT prep program. PARENTS SHOULD HAVE GOTTEN AN
E-MAIL with the activation code for their own account.
Meeting
for Sophomore Parents
Saturday, April 24, 9:30 a.m. in the SLRC
(Stettler Learning Resources Center)
Parents, take this opportunity to meet your son’s or
daughter’s counselor, ask questions and learn more about the Sem’s college
guidance program.
Please e-mail your attendance plans to administrative
assistant Erin Rother: erother@wyomingseminary.org or call (570) 270-2106.
Sign up for PAI and Summer at Sem Programs
Look online for a variety of summer programs offered right here at Sem.
PAI (the Performing Arts Institute) has something for the young (age 7-18)
music and theater lover in your house. And primary, middle and high school
students will add to their summer fun by signing up for Summer at Sem academic
and enrichment programs.
The Blue Knights are back in action…
Find the most up-to-date scores and game recaps,
including full coverage of the undefeated boys tennis team, on the individual
team Web sites. In action this spring are the boys and girls lacrosse teams,
baseball, softball, girls soccer and boys tennis. Go Blue Knights!
Winter
Sports MVP/Gold Award Recipients announced
Director
of Athletics Karen Klassner recently announced Sem’s Most Valuable Players,
Coaches’ Awards and Gold Award winners for winter sports. Athletes who earned
four varsity letters or three varsity and one junior varsity letters in their
sport receive Gold Awards.
Photographed following the awards
presentation are, first row from left: seniors Pharoah Rodriguez, Will
Moore, Chelsea VanGlahn,
Kyle Johnson, Lukas Bilek and junior Jacob Baker. Second row, from left:
seniors Danielle Harbula, Mike McMullan, sophomore Ann Romanowski,
junior Lauren Skudalski, seniors Tyler Skroski, Anastasya Menaker, Tachporn Akharaekpanya and Jakub Husek. Not present for photo:
junior Thomas Martin, sophomore Kristina Yannotta and senior Bryce Caiazzo.
Commencement weekend approaching
May is almost here, and while all students are anticipating summer vacation, members
of the class of 2010 are looking forward to graduation and the completion of
their Sem education. Baccalaureate will be held on Saturday, May 29 at 5:00
p.m. in the Church of Christ Uniting, and Commencement exercises will begin at
1:00 p.m. on Sunday, May 30 on back campus. For information and a complete
schedule, pull down the Upper School menu on the front page of the Sem Web site
and click on the Commencement button, or click here.
