Despite the pandemic, students in Future Business Leaders of America across the state of Pennsylvania continue to join and participate in this organization in the safest ways they possibly can.

          Western Wayne Senior Lenny Maiocco was appointed FBLA State Parliamentarian at the Virtual FBLA State Leadership Conference held this past May.  Subsequently, the first PA FBLA Executive Committee meeting was held this past August at the Kalahari Resort.  Lenny achieved his position of Parliamentarian by attaining the highest score on the FBLA State Parliamentary Procedure Test.  Lenny explained that the test covered tasks like how to run a meeting effectively by making motions, speaking at certain times, etc. At the PA FBLA Executive Committee meeting, he received his state officer medal.

          Lenny feels excited to be able to work with state level FBLA officers and advisers.  At the meeting in August, the state officer team formed their plans of action for this year.

          “Our main goals right now are recruitment, maintaining membership, fundraising, and community service,” Lenny explained.  “Our top goal is maintaining membership, and we are doing this by having a social media presence, having give-aways, and creating a membership video.”

          No matter the format that Lenny participates in FBLA events, whether in-person or virtual, he most enjoys his interactions with other students.

          “My favorite part of my FBLA experiences is meeting new people, working with new people, and seeing their ideas and what they bring to the table,” Lenny, who aspires to major in business and minor in Spanish in college, said.

          “My experiences in FBLA have taught me more responsibility, how to balance school and sports, and how to prioritize PA FBLA ahead of my needs,” Lenny, who was ranked third in the state for tennis his sophomore year, explained.  “I have learned a lot about time management, collaboration, and being places on time.”

          Lenny believes he will put these skills to use in college and law school in the future.  He is also a member of National Honor Society, the Western Wayne Student Ambassador Program, and served as vice president of Western Wayne’s FBLA last year.  He also hopes to run for student council in his senior year.

          One of Lenny’s main priorities is his commitment to PA FBLA. He encourages students across the state of Pennsylvania to join or maintain their membership in FBLA. 

          “Students can search PA FBLA on social media to find more information about membership in the program this challenging year,” Lenny explained.  He noted that the organization’s presence is on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

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On September 17^th Western Wayne High School Students in grade nine experienced the THINK! ENERGY Innovation Program. This program is an interactive, hands-on presentation with a take home energy efficiency kit for each participating student and teacher. The program teaches the importance of energy, natural resources, and environmental resources, and gives each participating student’s family energy-efficient technologies to install at home.

Students and staff in the high school received innovation kits on September 17.   The kits included two faucet aerators, a water conserving shower head as well an advanced smart energy power strip.  206 innovation kits were distributed overall.  This comes to 4,632 new LED bulbs distributed to the Western Wayne School District since the program’s launch in 2015.  This program will also result in a number of mini grants for the teachers in the high school as well. 

Western Wayne freshman Ireland Swingle said she has used the showerhead, faucet, and power strip.

“The showerhead gave a lot more power than my old one,” Ireland explained.  “It feels good to help the environment by using these things.”

Fellow classmate Kevin Marcinkevich agrees on both counts.

“I noticed an improvement with water flow when using the showerhead,” Kevin said.  “It is nice to help the environment by making simple changes.”

Another classmate Frankie Leyshon has really been enjoying using the power strip. 

“You can plug in an Xbox, iPhone charger, television, and computer all in at once,” Frankie explained.  “It is neat to watch the strip conserve energy when certain parts of it are not in use.”

The Think Energy Innovation Program has been brought to the schools by the National Energy Foundation, PPL Electric Utilities and the Pennsylvania Department of Education.  For more information or questions, please contact National Energy Foundation at 1-855-494-2942 or email  stephanie.dorman@nef1.org.

In a world full of uncertainty, it was clear on Thursday, Oct. 1, at Western Wayne’s Sharkey Rosetti Memorial Stadium on the campus of Western Wayne High School that it was certain that the students and families of Western Wayne are the best.  Western Wayne senior band members were honored at this event that a limited amount of family members and friends were able to attend in accordance to CDC guidelines.

            All of the students felt extremely grateful for this opportunity.

            “I am so excited to get to go out there and perform for my family and friends,” Senior Alex Taylor, who aspires to attend The University of Scranton next year, said.  “We are all so glad that this night could be possible.”

            The Western Wayne Music Department would like to publicly recognize the district administration, specifically Dr. Matthew Barrett, superintendent; Mr. Paul Gregorski, high school principal; Mr. Matthew Barr, assistant high school principal; Mr. Robert Black, athletic director; and members of the board of education who constantly support our music students for allowing this night to be possible.  They also wish to thank the families of band members who have been so flexible during this time.

            Band students were first honored before the 7 p.m. event at the stadium by Band Director Elaine Ort and the Band Parent’s Association.  Per tradition the student received senior gifts and flowers before proceeding to the stadium to be recognized with their parents. 

            It was a beautiful night outside for these students to be honored and you could feel the love and support in the air as their names were called and they walked out onto the football team for the first time in many months to be recognized for their senior year.

            A dozen band seniors were recognized.  They included Taylor Altenhofen, a band member for four years, stage crew for three, and martial arts for six years.  Taylor plans to attend Marywood University to study criminal justice and then enroll in the police academy.

            Nickolas Curtis is a four-year band member who also plays soccer, wrestling, and volleyball.  He plans to attend college upon graduation.

            Alyssa Donnini is a four-year band member and serves this year as a Drum Major.  She had done stage crew for four years, drama club for one year, chorus for two years, jazz band for two years, pit band for two years, and district band for two years.   She plans to attend a four-year college and major in criminology.

            Haley Estus is a four-year band member who also participates in cross country, basketball, track and field, FBLA and is in NHS. She plans to attend college for criminal justice and criminology.

            Rhonda Fenkner is one of this year’s Drum Majors.  She is also a member of Drama Club and musical for five years along with also having participated in choir, and pep band. Rhonda plans to attend Marywood University with a major in musical therapy.

            Cheyenne Haney is new to the Western Wayne Band this year. She also participates in track and field. She wishes to attend college upon graduation to become a psychologist or forensic scientist.

            Stephanie Knecht, a four-year marching band member, plans to attend college for veterinarian technology.

            Julia Lamberton is a member of band, cheer, FBLA, and NHS. She aspires to go into the medical imaging field.

             Abby Lopez is a four-year band member, color guard for one year, and Ultimate Frisbee team for three years.  She plans to attend Mansfield University for graphic design.

            Hailey Robbins is a four- year band member, pep band for one year, concert band for four years, and stage crew for two years.  She wishes to study criminology at Mansfield University and then go on to become an FBI Agent.

            Alex Taylor is a four-year band member, choir for three years, Ultimate Frisbee for three years, and Drama Club for three years. He plans to attend The University of Scranton for communications.

            Lily Visceglia is a four-year band member, five-year drama club and musical member, and, also, participates in FBLA, student council, and Varsity cheerleading. She wishes to attend college to pursue a career in fashion merchandising and design while minoring in performing arts.

            After all senior names were called and the students walked across the football field with their parents for pictures, the band seniors took to the floor to perform the “Star-Spangled Banner”.

            “It was a special moment to get to play with all of the seniors in the band,” Senior Lily Visceglia said.  “I have made a lot of beautiful memories in the Western Wayne Band over the years starting during my freshman year when I went on my first band trip to New York City.”

            The seniors and all members of the Western Wayne Band and Color Guard then continued to make more special memories for both themselves and their families and friends in attendance on Thursday, Oct. 1.  They presented to the audience a mash-up of their favorite senior class stand tunes, greatest hits, and songs from their 2020-21 Field Show: Hot and Cold.  This year’s Field Show songs include “Hot Stuff,” “Ice Castles,” “Hot n Cold,” and “Hot, Hot, Hot.”

            The students worked to put the show together during distanced rehearsals this summer and fall. 

            “Our rehearsals were very different this year,” Senior Alex Taylor, who plays a solo in “Ice Castles,” said.  “But it was worth it in the end to get to put together another great show for our senior year.  It really is a show we will never forget.”

            Finally, per Western Wayne tradition, always to show school pride, the band closed the show with the Western Wayne Alma Mater.              “Alyssa and I felt honored to have the chance to serve as Drum Majors tonight and for this truly historic marching band season,” Rhonda Fenkner, drum major, said about conducting the performance with fellow senior Drum Major Alyssa Donnini.

The Freshman Orientation will be hosted virtually this year, through the following link. Information on this link will include the slideshow presentation of the program, a video tour of the school, and a very helpful survival guide. Our goal is for you to have all of the information you need to successfully start the year. If you need a personal appointment or want a small group tour of the school, they will be conducted by appointment on August 31st from 10:30-2:30. Please call the High School Counseling Department at 1-800-321-9973 to schedule your appointment or tour.

The orientation link can be found below.
https://ww3.westernwayne.org/freshman-orientation/

Recently, five members of the Western Wayne chapter of Future Business Leaders of America were recognized during the FBLA National Leadership Experience.  The team of Lenny Maiocco, Sydney Peet, Darlene Black, Kate Mattern, and Lena Piccolino captured a third-place award in the Parliamentary Procedure event.

            This year’s National Leadership Conference was originally scheduled for Salt Lake City, Utah in late June.  However, the COVID-19 virus put an end to all travel as well as school.  FBLA-PBL, Inc. decided to provide its members with an opportunity to compete in its National Awards Program and chose to host a national conference virtually.  

First, the above members took their objective tests individually and online.  Once they advanced to the final round (top 15 teams in the country), the students were given the parliamentary problem and used the Zoom app to record the performance part of the event, which consisted of a role play of a chapter meeting.

            Also participating in this virtual leadership experience were Western Wayne’s Rachel Hoch, Kaeli Romanowski, and Abby Kapschull—Intro to FBLA; Gabby Tetreault, Ashton Fitzsimmons, and Rachel Tuman—Intro to Parliamentary Procedure; Lacey Falloon and Celeste Orchard, Accounting I; and Landon Firmstone, Julia Lamberton, and Collin Murray, Entrepreneurship.

            For the fortieth consecutive year, the Western Wayne chapter received the Gold Seal Chapter Award of Merit, the highest award a chapter can receive on the national level.

            Theresa Lubash is the local chapter adviser. 

Graduation pictures are available for pick up at the high school office on Monday July 13. If you or your child participated in the virtual walking across the stage for graduation, the pictures taken by the photographer are ready. There is a CD with the photos or the graduate and of the families. High office is open Monday-Friday 8-3.