Western Wayne School District hosted the Annual NEIU Reading Competition on Wednesday, May 8. Numerous area schools competed in both the high school and middle school divisions of the competition. Hundreds of students participated in the event that celebrates a love for reading. A team from North Pocono placed first for the high school division and a team from Forest City placed first for the middle school division. Congratulations to all involved! Pictured are some Western Wayne Middle School students who participated. From left standing: Kylie Merring, Elizabeth Wasylyk, Anna Mangieri, Chaz Smith, and Ella Merring. From left kneeling: Alyson Buchinski, Emily Brophy, Ashley Small Bermudez, and Adam Kellogg.
The link below is the official press release from the American School Counselor Association regarding the 2018-2019 RAMP-certified schools. R.D. Wilson is one of only 71 schools across the country who were awarded this designation this year.
“ASCA officially announces the 2019 RAMP Schools. 71 schools across the U.S. obtained RAMP designation for the 2018-19 SY. The RAMP designation, awarded for aligning with the criteria in the ASCA National Model, recognizes schools committed to delivering a comprehensive, data-informed school counseling program and an exemplary educational environment. Since the program’s inception, nearly 900 schools have been designated as RAMP recipients.”
The Western Wayne
Ultimate Frisbee Team recently won the Spirit Trophy at a tournament this past
April called the Firebird Invite hosted by Holy Ghost Prep in Bensalem, PA.
One of the team’s coaches
high school science teacher, Anthony Zoppi explained the significance of such
an award for the sport.
“To be clear, this is not
a first place trophy,” Zoppi said. “It
is the spirit trophy which in our sport is regarded as the more coveted
trophy. After each round the teams have
to fill out an evaluation sheet about themselves and the other team. We were rated so high above the other teams
that the tournament director said he didn’t even need the last round to know
who won.”
Both Zoppi and co-coach
Alex Marchena, Western Wayne Alumni 2015 and former Western Wayne Ultimate
captain, discussed the great importance of sportsmanship in Ultimate.
“I
think the level of sportsmanship really sets it apart from almost any other
sport and it is also the reason I love the sport,” Marchena said. “Ultimate is almost entirely self-officiated. Even at the professional level, players still
call their fouls, call whether they scored a point, and whether they remained
in bounds on difficult catches. Referees
are only there to ensure fair play and even though they have the ability to
overrule a player’s call based on what they saw, players on the opposing team
have the right to overrule calls made by the referee if they object to the call
in favor of the opposing team.”
Along
with being a sport unique in regards to sportsmanship it also is different from
other more traditional sports in a variety of other ways.
“It
stands out in multiple ways,” Zoppi explained.
“It is co-ed. It’s self-officiated.
And without the leagues like Philly has, it isn’t mainstream. In that area [Philly], Ultimate is regarded
just as highly as soccer or football.
Even more to a certain extent as several Radnor players have become
pro. We just don’t have the same ultimate
scene and probably won’t until other schools in the area get on board with it.”
Despite
being one of the few Ultimate high school teams in the area, Western Wayne has
been able to play at many tournaments since the team first began in 2006. The Western Wayne Ultimate Frisbee Team
started out playing intramural from 2006-2008 at the request of Western Wayne
students who got interest going in a team.
Once approved by the high school principal at
the time the students sought out a faculty member with experience in the sport
and discovered Zoppi’s background in Ultimate.
Having first played Ultimate for East Stroudsburg University from 1994-1998
and having served as Vice President for the team in 1998, Zoppi seemed like the
ideal candidate.
Zoppi explained he was
enthusiastic to work with the students on the endeavor of starting the Ultimate
team. He explained how he worked to get
the students involved in scrimmages and other parts of the history of Western
Wayne Ultimate.
“In the beginning of
spring 2008, I asked ESU, who was my alma mater, if they would mind a scrimmage
game. We played ESU and put up a fair
amount of points. I don’t remember the
score, but it was enough for ESU to invite us to their tournament later that
spring. At that tournament, we met most
of the college teams from the area and invites to other tournaments started
coming in. Then Principal Diane
Scarfalloto and Superintendent Andy Falonk approached me and asked if competing
in these tournaments against other schools was going to be a regular
thing. I asked our players at the time,
and that’s what they wanted. At that
point, the principal and superintendent felt it should become a school
recognized sport and asked me if it was approved by the school board would I
apply to be coach. In 2009, it was
considered a sport under the coaching contract.
I have been officially coach from 2008-2019,” Zoppi explained. “This year, I split coaching duties with
former captain Alex Marchena. He was
approved as a volunteer last year and this year got approved to split coaching
with me. I am happy to know that as I
stand down from coaching that he applied and got hired for next year. It’s great to see it live on past me, and
even better to see it is living on with someone that came through the program
himself.”
And the foundation for
the legacy of Western Wayne Ultimate to live into the future is being created
by Marchena and the current team. The
group practices on Mondays and Wednesdays in both the fall and spring sports
seasons.
“Kids train the same way
all the other teams train, we work on conditioning, run through offensive and
defensive plays, run drills, and have scrimmage games. Endurance is key,” Zoppi explained. “A tournament usually has 4-6 rounds over an
hour long each round. A starting player
usually runs four to five miles per game.
It is conceivable for a starting player to put in 20 miles of running
through the course of the day.”
All the members of the
Western Wayne Ultimate Team are extremely dedicated to their training and
teammates. Western Wayne Ultimate
Captain Tyler Keill, senior, loves working to see his teammates develop into
stronger players.
“I like watching my team
grow,” Tyler who has played Ultimate for Western Wayne for four years
explained, “It’s not about correcting them when they are wrong but working with
them to help them grow.”
Tyler
has nine years of experience with Ultimate in general having first become
interested in the sports through Western Wayne alumni Mike Koch.
Through
working with the Western Wayne team Tyler feels like he is a part of the strong
legacy of Western Wayne Ultimate built by Zoppi, Marchena, and other past team
members.
“Overall
everyone is there to help each other and that’s what I like,” Tyler, who
aspires to one day join the military, said.
Fellow
Captain junior Matt Romanowski agrees with Tyler and feels excited to continue
working with underclassmen in his senior year to ensure that the enthusiasm for
the sport will continue long into the future.
Zoppi
is grateful to work with students as dedicated as Tyler and Matt. He knows it is their efforts that will keep
the program alive in years to come.
At the
end of this season, Zoppi will turn the program over completely to Marchena
after having coached for the past decade.
Zoppi
has a multitude of favorite memories with the team including their recent
Spirit trophy win and a variety of wins the Western Wayne team has had over the
years where they came in as underdogs and came out on top at different events.
A
special memory of Zoppi’s involves an experience he had with the team some
years ago at a Wilkes University tournament held at a field in Kirby Park. He recalls it being half time when one of his
players took action.
“One of
my players notices a homeless woman sleeping on a park bench. Instead of talking strategy or trying to
figure out what offense or defense we want to run in the second half of the
game, my team decided to not only give the women our whole food bag [each team
in the tournament was given one], but go to other teams and collect more,”
Zoppi fondly remembers. “I don’t think I
have ever been more proud of the team.”
Zoppi,
also, in reflecting on his many years coaching, feels proud of all of the
students he has seen go through the Western Wayne Ultimate Team including
Marchena. He knows he is leaving the
team in good hands and is glad to be ending his final coaching season this year
on a high note.
Marchena,
who went to Lackawanna College for culinary arts and works as a chef in Hawley,
has been a volunteer coach with the team in the past and feels honored to now
be the coach for next year’s season.
“I was
both excited and honored to be asked [by Zoppi] to take over the coaching
position,” Marchena explained. “I’m
truly happy that the sport that Zoppi put so much time and energy into building
at Western Wayne is going to live on even as he is done coaching, and I’m sure
he would say the same thing.”
Band Performs at GDS Fair and Meets Kurt AaronAugust 29, 2024Kurt Aaron and Michael Olivo
Band and Color Guard perform at the GDS Fair.
The annual Western Wayne Marching Band and Color Guard performance at the GDS Fair was especially eventful this year because on the day of their performance Wednesday, August 28, WNEP’s Kurt Aaron and his infamous dog Ranger were also there doing live spots. Aaron briefly interviewed Western Wayne band member Michael Olivo, a senior. Michael proudly told the viewing audience about Western Wayne’s upcoming performance at the fair.
“It was really exciting to get to promote our band to a TV audience,” Michael said.
The students were thrilled to perform their 2024-25 Boy Bands themed field show for the audience along with playing some fan favorite stand tunes.
Drum majors this year are seniors Lia Hartman and Kalob Franko. This is Lia’s second season as drum major.
“We are all so grateful to be able to perform for the local community who is so supportive of us,” Lia said.
The Western Wayne Band is under the direction of Mrs. Elaine Ort who is now in her 11th season with the district.
The entire Western Wayne Band and Color Guard invite the local community to attend the first home game of the season for varsity football against Lackawanna Trail on Friday, August, 30, at the Sharkey-Rosetti stadium. Western Wayne will have the pregame show starting at about 6:45 p.m.; kick-off is at 7 p.m. [...]
Western Wayne to Host Annual Car Show Saturday, Sept. 7—NEW RAIN DATE! August 27, 2024The Western Wayne Hot Rod Club and Drama Club will host their 2024 Annual Car Show on Saturday, September 7, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the high school parking lot, 1970A Easton Turnpike, Lake Ariel, PA, near the football stadium. Please note our NEW RAIN DATE is Sunday, September 15.Food to be sold at the concession stand. Registration fee is $10. Spectators are free. The Hot Rod Club will give prizes for best car, truck, tractor, motorcycle, and best in show.In addition, the Drama group will sell a variety of concessions. There will also be a raffle of baskets and gift certificates generously donated by businesses and families in the local community.Drama Club student Robert Scramuzza is excited to partner with the Hot Rod Club for the for the Car Show. He explained how the Drama Club students will be dressed in 50s attire for the event.“We wanted our presence at the event to go along with the variety of cars from the past that surely will be there,” Bobby said. “We hope that the public comes out to enjoy the cars and to have some good food and purchase some chances to win baskets and gift certificates.”Members of the Drama Parents Club are working to obtain a variety of items for the raffle at the Car Show from many very generous businesses and families in our Wildcat community. The students involved in the Hot Rod Club and Drama Club can use the funds raised from this event for their club activities.The Hot Rod Club meets on a regular basis to work on a variety of automotive projects after school and can use the funds for their projects among other activities.The Drama Club meets on a regular basis after school to work on a variety of projects and activities.“Drama Club gives students a place where they can express themselves,” club president Lillian Maros explained. “We are like one big family in our club and really enjoy coming together to work as a team on events such as the Car Show.”All of the members of the Hot Rod Club, Drama Club, and Drama Parents Club cordially invite the public to attend this fun-filled event on Saturday, Sept. 7 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the High School parking lot near the stadium. Come out and see some great vehicles, take some chances on our basket raffle, enjoy some food, and enjoy some time socializing. Rain date is Sunday, September 15. [...]
Freshman Orientation – Save the Date!August 8, 2024August 22, 2024 – 6:00-7:30pm – Veterans Memorial Auditorium, WWHS
Western Wayne High School welcomes the Class of 2028!
Information on the high school/ 9th Grade Transition
High School Survival Guide
Student’s class schedule
Tours
Refreshments [...]
Safe2Say Something is a youth violence prevention
program run by the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General.
The program teaches youth and adults how to recognize
warning signs and signals, especially within social media,
from individuals who may be a threat to themselves or others
and to “say something” BEFORE it is too late.