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