On October 29th Western Wayne High School Students in grade 9 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 October 29^th.  The kits included four LED light bulbs, shower timer, a water conserving shower head as well an advanced smart energy power strip.  180 innovation kits were distributed overall.  This comes to 3,732 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.  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.

Caption: Left to right: Science Teacher, Mark Nebzydoski; Presenters Robert Penkala and Eugene Shultz.

Learning rhythms, beats, steps, and choreography isn’t just  work for celebrity guests on Dancing with the Stars, students at Western Wayne High School have a yearly tradition of learning Spanish dancing as a part of their curriculum each fall.

Local dance instructor and studio owner Vince Brust works with the Western Wayne students to teach a variety of traditional Spanish dances such as tango, merengue, mambo, and salsa among others.

The students had a few weeks of sessions with Mr.  Brust before debuting their new dance skills for other students during the day on Friday, Oct. 12, in Western Wayne’s newly renovated high school auditorium.

Students performed a variety of the dances they learned for their classmates. They did a choreographed dance with multiple partners and a cha-cha among other numbers during the day as a practice session for an evening performance.  The Spanish students also gave the night performance on Monday, Oct. 15, for their friends, family, and members of the community.

Junior Kendra Oliver had the special responsibility of not only dancing in the performances but also choreographing a cha-cha for the show.

“I was able to use the steps I learned last year to choreograph the dance,” Kendra explained.  “It was easy to teach it to the students who could pick up dance quickly.”

Kendra’s classmate and friend Sinaea Buford, junior, enjoyed seeing all of the dances at the in-school show including Kendra’s.

“I enjoy performing the dances, but I like to watch it more,” Sinaea explained.  “I like seeing students dance that are passionate about it.”

Sinaea aspires to be an interpreter for the FBI one day and hopes to travel to other countries to experience their cultures.

Sinaea’s classmate junior Nick Gombita was hesitant at first to try Spanish dancing.  However, once Nick really got involved in the program he very much grew to enjoy the process.

“I have been doing Spanish dancing at school for three years now,” Nick said.  “At first, I was worried about messing up the steps, but now I know that doesn’t matter.  I enjoy learning the dances.”

One skill the students learn from taking part in the Spanish dancing is how to work together as a team.

Senior Alexis Fawcett and junior Austin Devine did most of the dances together this year in their classes and for the performances.

“One of my favorite dances was the merengue,” Alexis, who plans to attend cosmetology school next year, explained.  “It was so fun moving in it and always doing something different.”

Austin agrees that the merengue was a fun dance and explained one of the partner moves he liked best.

“I liked learning how to do the cuddle hold,” he said.  “It was complicated at first, but once we practiced it with the music it got easier.”

All of the students agreed that one of the best parts of the night performance was when the audience was asked to come on stage to dance with the students.  The audience was invited up twice once to dance a three- person dance and later in the show to learn a line dance.

Both Alexis and Austin were able to dance with their siblings during this portion of the show.

“It was fun to show the moves to my younger sisters,” Austin, who wished to study radiology in the future, explained.  “I liked getting to educate them about dance more.”

All of the students look forward to working with Brust again next year to learn more Spanish dancing, and seniors like Alexis plan to come back to Western Wayne to support their fellow classmates in their future performances.

Creating surreal art and performing with renowned foreign composers are just two of the accomplishments of the Western Wayne seniors chosen to be one group of WVIA artists of the week for fall 2018.

Both Melody Gershey and Katherine Moore have been named artists of the week. Melody for her visual art work and Kat for her work with performance art.

Melody’s interest in art stemmed from time spent with family members like her grandmother sharing the same talent.

Inspiration for one of Melody’s oil paintings “Autumn Impressionism” came from a piece her grandmother had created.

“I just picked up painting from a young age,” Melody explained.  “I enjoyed seeing my family’s art and found it came naturally to me as well.”

Melody said that five of her pieces will be featured for WVIA in the mediums of oil, acrylic, and colored pencil.

One piece is a reflective self-portrait.

“It’s very surreal.  I’m holding a huge book in a forest,” she described.  “There is also a moon that has elements of the face of a clock.  I included elements of things I enjoy like books, the moon, and the concept of time.”

Melody explained that she has enjoyed developing her art skills in her classes at Western Wayne.  Her art teachers first introduced her to surrealism.

“I enjoy surrealist art because people can interpret it in so many different ways,” Melody said.

She feels honored to have been recognized by WVIA and looks forward to continuing to develop her love of art.  She plans to attend cosmetology school next fall and has plans to start teaching art classes at a studio in Hawley in the near future.

Kat has a great love for visual art just as Melody does.  The girls are in the same art classes for their senior year. Kat explained that she also enjoys painting and other art mediums.

However, the one area Kat excels at even more than visual art is performance art.  She has earned many honors with her music over her four years at Western Wayne and is being recognized by WVIA for performance art.  Some of her honors include qualifying to play with region orchestra for the past two years on obo and playing with music groups in the local community including the ensemble group the Marywood University Wind Symphony.

Through performing with this Marywood group, Kat had the opportunity this past summer to travel to China on a cultural exchange program and play with famed Chinese composers.  She explained how she got to be conducted by the composer of the music for the introduction for the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

“I learned that music is truly a language for all,” Kat said.  “We were all able to understand what he meant when working with him through how he expressed it.”

Kat enjoys playing a variety of musical instruments including:  flute, piccolo, English horn, and her favorite instrument, the obo.  She also likes singing.

Kat has had numerous meaningful experiences with music throughout her years at Western Wayne.

She named her experience playing in the pit band for Western Wayne’s production of Seussical her 8^th grade year as one of her favorite times playing music at school.

“I was given the opportunity to play in the pit by my teacher Mrs. Ort.  Not many 8^th graders are asked to play in that particular ensemble,” Kat explained.  “I was just starting to learn obo, and it was like a switch flipped for me and made me want to do music after high school.”

Kat plans to study music education next year and thinks that her experiences as one of the drum majors for the Western Wayne Wildcat Marching Band is helping her prepare for her future career.

“I love being able to go up on the podium and talk to the band and teach them,” Kat said.  “In band, how you act is reflected off everyone else.  I feel supported by the band as whole just as I support them in my leadership role.  I love teaching people.”

Both Melody and Kat are thrilled to be one group of artists named as WVIA artists of the week for the fall of 2018.  Their segment will air on WVIA in November.  For the latest information on WVIA artists of the week, check their website http://www.wvia.org/education/artist-week/

Repurposing men’s blazers, designing long skirts, and creating entire themed fashion collections are just some of the tasks that Western Wayne fashion teacher Mrs. Colleen Carmody has her design students working on this year in the high school.

The students recently took a field trip to Joann Fabrics to get materials for some of their upcoming fashion projects.  Carmody explained that one such project involves students re-purposing men’s blazers.

“The students basically recycle the men’s blazers by making them into something more fashionable,” Carmody explained.  “They create women’s jackets out of the blazers that feature brocades, satin, chain belts, and/ or other elements.  They also dart the jackets on the inseam to make them more form fitting.”

Senior fashion student Erin Murphy explained that she thinks the most challenging part of the repurposed blazer project involves using bias tape to make the jacket more size-appropriate for a female.

“It’s challenging to get the bias tape close to the edge of the seam,” Murphy, who wishes to study science in college and enter the medical field afterwards, explained.  “I like that I can make choices in designing the blazer. I chose blue shiny material to add to it.”

Junior fashion student Abby Black also enjoys having the opportunity to make choices in her classes with Carmody.

“I chose a rustic color for my blazer,” Abby said.  “I feel challenged working with the material of the original coat because of its shape and how the liner is flimsy, so I add bias tape to firm it up.  I look forward to seeing the finished product.”

Fellow senior fashion student Shauna McAndrew, as well, feels anxious to see the finished repurposed blazers.  She chose to add material with a floral design to her coat.

“I like this project because we get to add a feminine look to what would generally be a male’s outfit,” Shauna, who wishes to attend beauty school, explained.

Junior Noelle Orehek is learning many sewing and design techniques that she can use to create various fashions through her construction portfolio in Carmody’s class.  She explained how she has learned competency tasks such as how to put in a zipper, how to put in a dart, and how to sew both French and flat-felled seams.

Noelle enjoyed her class’ recent trip to Joann’s because she successfully worked to budget the money she was allotted.

“I was able to budget money on fabrics that I deemed less important and then was able to get a blue floral material that was fancier to use in making my maxi skirt for class,” Noelle explained.  “I want use that skirt in our spring fashion show.”

Noelle’s friend and classmate junior Trina Barcarola agrees that making the long skirts will be one of her favorite projects this year.  She is also working on her basic skills with her construction portfolio and has been most recently practicing her base stitches.

“I can’t wait to see how our skirts turn out,” Trina said.

Surely the skirt project will have a certain quality of sophistication just like senior Victoria Petrosky’s senior collection entitled “Elegance.”

Each year Carmody’s advanced fashion students create a fashion collection to be featured at the annual spring fashion show at the Western Wayne Veterans Memorial Auditorium.

The senior fashion students have already began working on their collections this fall.  Victoria explained that she chose “Elegance” as her theme because she loves fashion that has this quality.

“My pieces look classy and clean,” Victoria, who will study sociology at East Stroudsburg University next year, explained. “I like to see the finished product of my design work and feel satisfied that I created these pieces.”

Victoria hopes to continue fashion design as a hobby and has already started her general education credits at East Stroudsburg University through a dual enrollment program with Western Wayne.

Senior fashion student Isabel Valentin agrees with Victoria that she enjoys seeing her ideas for designs come to life in her finished pieces.

Isabel has titled her senior collection “Inspiring Vintage” or “IV”.

She explained how one of her collection pieces is a modern Kimono design. Some of her other pieces include a vest, fitted pants, and a flowy top.

“I like old things,” Isabel, who wishes to study dentistry next year, explained. “In modern style, most pieces are more fitted and flared.  I like my designs to be very flowing and not tight.  I first started designing clothes when I was younger by using a sewing machine to make costumes.  I am really excited to now be creating a senior collection for our spring fashion show.”

Both the students and Carmody look forward to continue developing their many fashion projects, some of which will be featured in Western Wayne’s annual spring fashion show.

Western Wayne Administration has recognized Robert Joseph Clemens as an outstanding student.  RJ is a senior who has been highly involved in Western Wayne’s academic clubs and music programs all four years of high school.

RJ is a member of National Honor Society, Pennsylvania Junior Academy of Science, Technology Student Association, Political Science Club, Scholastic Team, Spanish Club, Envirothon, Band, Drama Club, musical theater, and the Reading Team.

RJ greatly enjoys his science classes at Western Wayne and plans to pursue a science major at either Temple University, Rutgers University or Hofstra University.

He is also involved in a variety of academic clubs including the Reading Team that he has participated in since middle school.  Students in this club get to read a variety of books for a competition against other local schools in the spring.

“I like learning from books I read and applying that information in competition,” RJ explained about his experiences with the Reading Team.

Along with all of RJ’s academic endeavors at Western Wayne he is also highly involved in musical theater and drama.

RJ has been in Western Wayne musicals for five years.  He was a part of the first class of 8^th graders that were invited to work on Western Wayne productions his 8^th grade year.

As an 8^th grader, he played a Wickersham Brother in Seussical.  For all of his high school years, he has played leading roles: including Shrek in Shrek, Albert Peterson in Bye Bye Birdie, and Jimmy Winter in Nice Work if You Can Get It.  He plans to audition for this year’s musical production as well.

RJ has also been the president of Wildcat Curtain Call, Western Wayne’s drama club, for the past two years.  RJ helped to start the initiative to form a year-long drama club at Western Wayne and hopes that students get to enjoy it for years to come.

“I feel honored to have been a part of the first group of students to participate in Wildcat Curtain Call,” he said.  “I have enjoyed planning events and fundraisers along with working with younger students to help them develop as performers.”

RJ has also worked on numerous local theater projects including working as the assistant director of the children’s theater for the Lakeside Players in the summer of 2017.  He had the opportunity through this experience to teach basic acting skills to students, create sound effects for shows, and work on scene changes during the productions.

In college, RJ plans to pursue his passion for theater along with his academic studies.