Western Wayne Crowns 2019 Semi Prince and Princess

This year’s Semi was themed, “Harvest Ball” and was held on Saturday, November 23, from 4 to 9 p.m. at Ladore, Waymart. There were over 250 students in attendance and several faculty members helped the Western Wayne security team chaperone the event. The 2019 Semi Prince is Lou Azzato and the Semi Princess is Rylee Sheehan. From left: Western Wayne High School Principal Paul Gregorski, Lou Azzato, Rylee Sheehan; and Vice Principal Matt Barr.

Second pic: Lou Azzato and Rylee Sheehan pose as 2019 Semi Prince and Princess.

Western Wayne High School Receives 2019 ExxonMobil Grant

The Western Wayne High School received a 500 dollar 2019 ExxonMobil Educational Alliance Grant for their math and science departments. ExxonMobil and Liberty Petroleum present these grants to various area schools each year. The check was presented to Western Wayne on Thursday, Nov. 21. Western Wayne Administration and staff are excited to use these funds to better the educational experiences of their students. From left: Mr. Matthew Barr, high school vice principal; David Stinson, district manager; and Mr. Paul Gregorski, high school principal.

Western Wayne High School to Start Student Ambassador Program

Row 1 (l to r): Celeste Orchard, Madison McGlone, Jamie Bryan, Kaeli Romanowski, Skylar Long, Cyrah Bihler, McKenzie Laity, Miranda Montijo, Cassidy Asinski, Angelia Reggie, Trina Barcarola, Landon Firmstone, Zane Janiszewski, and Alex Amorine. Row 2 (l to r): Asia Nichols, Sinclaire Ogof, Brendan Fitzsimmons, Zachary Rovinsky, Jack McAllister, Parker Howell, James Fryzel, Derek Mason. Absent from photo: Lenny Maiocco, Alaina Maiocco, Abby Black, Sinaea Buford, Ashton Fitzsimmons, Morgan Coccodrilli, Sydney Peet, and Ezra Tetreault.

This year Western Wayne High School will have a student ambassador program. Ambassadors will greet visitors to the high school and escort them to their destination in the building. In November, the ambassadors went through a training with Julie Bialkowski from Penn State Scranton.

Freshman Skylar Long said she learned a lot about developing her communication skills from the training session. Skylar is highly involved at Western Wayne being a member of both the volleyball and basketball teams along with participating in Future Business Leaders of America.

“I think that participating in the student ambassador program will help me be a better student leader,” Skylar said. “I will learn how to take control of situations and how to be personable with people.”

Skylar explained that student ambassadors will be given advance notice of when they will greet visitors. In addition, student ambassadors will dress professionally and give visitors a brief tour of the school. They will also engage visitors by telling them facts about the district such as the history of Western Wayne along with other information about sports and clubs at the school that individual student ambassadors are a part of.

Junior Lenny Maiocco will also be a student ambassador and hopes the program helps him to develop his communication skills. Lenny is a student leader at Western Wayne who is involved in many activities. He is a member of the tennis team, FBLA, NHS, Youth Advisory Committee, student council, and National Society of High School Scholars.

“My experience in the program will help me to work on my ability to present information that I know to others,” Lenny, who aspires to study engineering or law, said.

Senior Sydney Peet agrees that the program will help her in the future.

“The program will allow me to grow my communication skills and work on connecting with others,” Sydney, who plans to study global business with a minor in musical theater, said.

All of the Western Wayne student ambassadors look forward to working with visitors to their school.

Western Wayne Students Visit Lacawac

Western Wayne students recently collected data on a trip to Lacawac. From left: Courtney Petrilak, Carter Davis, and Cailie Thoman.

Western Wayne High School AP Biology students visited Lacawac Sanctuary and Biological Field Station on October 17.

Students had the opportunity to engage in field research in the area of Forest Ecology and Conservation Biology. During the course of the visit, students collected and analyzed data from the Lacawac Forest including a comparison of biodiversity inside of Deer Exclosures as compared to the rest of the forest, tree identification, invasive species discussions and conservation ecology.

These rich field experiences allowed students to really understand the characteristics of a stable forest ecosystem. Students learned about research that is happening at the collegiate level at Lacawac Field Station and about partnerships between Lacawac and various universities. These students will return to Lacawac in the spring to conduct their own research in the area of aquatic ecosystems.

All of the students greatly enjoyed their field experience.

Junior Cailie Thoman, who wishes to study marine biology in college, explained the benefits of doing scientific work in this type of setting.

“I liked getting out and being in the fresh air on our hike while we worked,” Cailie explained.

Her classmate fellow junior Carter Davis agreed.

Western Wayne students recently collected data on a trip to Lacawac. From left: Richie Reed, Morgan Coccodrilli, Joey Skirpan, and Luke Urian.

“We got a lot of experience on collecting data,” Davis, who hopes to enter the business field, explained. “I find it easier to learn outside. I think I am more attentive out there in the field.”

Another classmate junior Courtney Petrilak explained how the students had many tasks on their trip.

“One thing we collected data on was different tree types,” Courtney, who aspires to be a physician’s assistant, said. “We had to identify them.”

All of the students agreed that their study of science grew and developed through the work they engaged in on the trip.

High School Biology teacher Mrs. Christine McClure is grateful to have the opportunity to have these types of experiences with her students.

“We would like to thank Mrs. Jamie Reeger for organizing, coordinating and creating such rich learning opportunities at Lacawac for our students and the Western Wayne Education Foundation for their generous grants that continue to fund our experiences,” McClure said. “We would also like to thank our administration for their support of this trip. We look forward to working with Lacawac Sanctuary and Field Station in the future as we continue to promote scientific research and career pathways in our community.”

Western Wayne Students Win Innovation Award at Annual Engineering Competition

At the annual engineering competition at Wallenpaupack High School, students were challenged with building a structure out of simple materials, that was able to transport a weighted model car across the span of two points on the wooden foundation students were given. The structure created by the students also had to move in some way to allow a 9″ obstacle to pass underneath.

The Western Wayne Team A decided to make their bridge unique and not use the optional pier support in the middle of the bridge. The team’s ideology behind this was that it would help make their bridge stand out. Their philosophy worked, the bridge was the only one in the competition that did not use a pier at all.

With all of the great minds working together, they came up with a design plan for a drawbridge that would lift upward to allow the car to pass under it. Since the team was only provided a limited selection of materials, they had to be creative with their design choices. They made this hinge out of cut up pieces of straw and a piece of spaghetti that passed through the straw allowing it to pivot.

The team’s design for the other half of the bridge held stationary. They used a technique of braiding paper towels to create a cable-like suspension for the static portion. By giving their bridge these attributes, the team achieved the innovation award at the competition.

The Western Wayne Team A consisted of Jacob McCormick, Landon Firmstone, Collin Murray, Matt Rosengrant, and Max Phillips.

Max discussed his experience at the competition.

“We used the first 20 to 30 minutes to brainstorm how we could make a bridge with the given materials. We first thought of a draw bridge, but we thought it would be too complex. So, we decided to try to make a half drawbridge, half suspension bridge,” Max explained. “I personally learned how to work as a team better and to find different ways to use unique materials.”

Max’s teammate Matt also enjoyed his experience at the competition and thought he benefited from it.

“At the annual Wallenpaupack engineering competition, my team and I were faced with an engineering problem. The problem was that we had to create a bridge which lifted up on one side in order for a car to pass under it. We ended up winning the innovation award. I believe this was mainly due to the paper-towel rope we made for the suspension part of the bridge as well as the pasta noodle and drinking straw hinge we made for the drawbridge section of the bridge,” Matt explained. “Overall, this competition challenged my mind a lot and was very enjoyable. I would definitely recommend anyone interested to attend.”

From left member of the Western Wayne Team A: Max Phillips, Collin Murray, Matt Rosengrant, Landon Firmstone, and Jacob McCormick.

WESTERN WAYNE FBLA MEMBERS PARTICIPATE IN BUSINESS RETREAT

Seven members of the Western Wayne High School chapter of Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) recently participated in a Business Retreat sponsored by the Wayne County School-to-Work Committee. In addition to students from Western Wayne, students from Wallenpaupack, Honesdale, and Forest City were in attendance.

The day began with an opening session conducted by Thomas Shepstone, Shepstone Management, who discussed the trends and forecasts of jobs in the Wayne County area. Next, Laurie Guzda got the students involved with an exciting marketing activity.

This was followed by a field trip to Moka Origins, a coffee roastery and bean-to-bar chocolate factory. The owners have established their own farm in Cameroon, Africa, and are uniting with partner farmers around the world to strive to generate real social change. Jeff Abella, Director, Himalayan Institute and CEO of Moka Origins, spoke to the students about social entrepreneurship and small business strategies.

Representing Western Wayne were (seated) Lenny Maiocco and Derek Mason. (Standing) Kate Mattern, Darlene Black, Sydney Peet, Ezra Tetreault, and James Fryzel. Ms. Theresa Lubash, FBLA Adviser and Business Department Chairperson, accompanied the students.

Western Wayne Celebrates Veterans Day

Pictured are veterans demonstrating the proper folding of the flag with 13 folds.

As a tradition for many years, Western Wayne administration, faculty, staff, and students joined together on Wednesday, November 13, to celebrate veterans in the community with a special in-school event that featured music from the high school band and chorus, wise words from a veteran guest speaker, and this year the event had the added component of a special presentation of the meaning of the 13 folds in the American flag.

Many local veterans attended the presentation at Western Wayne. Some of which had special connections to Western Wayne students. Marty Reingold, Vietnam veteran, attended with his wife Marsha to spend the day honoring veterans with their grandson sophomore Matt Reingold.

Marty Reingold and his wife Marsha shared the Veterans Day assembly at Western Wayne High School with their grandson. From left: Marty Reingold, Vietnam veteran; Matt Reingold, sophomore at Western Wayne; and Marsha Reingold.

Marsha explained that they have taken part in the Veterans Day assembly at Western Wayne for the past four years.

“Matt is very proud of his papa,” Marsha explained. “We are so happy to be here with our grandson. It is very rewarding to see the school do things for our service men and to witness the camaraderie.”

Matt agreed with his grandmother.

“The best part about today is being able to honor the veterans,” Matt explained. “Especially my grandfather.”

Another veteran that felt proud to be at the event with his grandchildren was Roger O’Brien, a United States Navy veteran. O’Brien explained that it was his first time at the Veterans Day event at Western Wayne. However, he had heard about it from his granddaughter Rebeccah King, who is a senior this year, and performed with the chorus and band at the event.

O’Brien also had a number of other grandchildren at the event who have attended Western Wayne. His grandchildren Johnathan Robbins, 7^th grade, and Summer Schaal, granddaughter, were with O’Brien before the presentation to welcome him to the school.

Roger O’Brien shared the Veterans Day assembly at Western Wayne High School with his grandchildren. From left: Johnathan Robbins, 7th grader at Western Wayne; Roger O’Brien, United States Navy veteran; and Summer Schaal.

“I am a very proud grandfather,” O’Brien said. “I promised them I would come.”

O’Brien traveled to Western Wayne from New Jersey for the event, and he was happy to discuss his time in the service with his grandchildren.

“I practically traveled around the world as a gunner on a cargo ship,” O’Brien explained. “I was in Russia twice. I was shipped to the West Coast and was headed to Okinawa, Japan, but they surrendered before we got there. We saw plenty.”

O’Brien discussed how he received many honors for his military service.

“I have a number of medals and ribbons for my time in the service which I have shown to my grandchildren,” O’Brien explained.

Reingold, O’Brien, and many other veterans processed into the auditorium to begin the event.

Highlights of the event include some beautifully performed patriotic pieces by the Western Wayne High School chorus and band. The veterans also were treated to a breakfast and lunch prepared by students in Mrs. Stephanie Zoppi’s culinary classes. In addition, during the assembly, a group of local veterans demonstrated and explained the meaning of the 13 folds in an American Flag when it is presented to a loved one at a military funeral service.

Students in Western Wayne’s FCCLA Club helped to greet Veterans for the event. From left: Paige Bell, Zoey Goldman, Kennedy Mistishin, Jaquelyn Morris, and Jaden Gregory.

The symbolism of each of the folds was explained in a very moving presentation. They represent a variety of meaningful parts of military service, faith in God, and faith in America. For example, the second fold signifies a belief in eternal life; the seventh fold is a tribute to our armed forces; and the final fold, when the stars are uppermost, is a tribute to our national motto, “In God We Trust.”

As a closing to the assembly, the students, veterans, and faculty in attendance heard from guest speaker Officer Robert Robbins. Officer Robbins served in the United States Army in the 101^st Airborne Division as a Light Wheel Vehicle Mechanic at Fort Campbell Kentucky for two years. He earned the Army Achievement Medal, Good Conduct Medal, and the Air Assault Badge.

Upon the conclusion of his active service, Officer Robbins joined the Pennsylvania National Guard and served in Alpha Co, 1^st Battalion of the 109^th Infantry Regiment. In this unit, he served as a Squad Leader, Vehicle Commander, was promoted to Sergeant and was awarded the General S. J. Stewart Medal for service and NCO Academy Graduate Ribbon.

Pictured is Guest Speaker Officer Robert Robbins. Officer Robbins serves as a School Resource Officer at Western Wayne since 2013.

In 1991, Officer Robbins joined the Pennsylvania Air National Guard and served with the Security Police Flight at Willow Grove Naval Air Station. He was responsible for base security, Flight Operations Security, and the protection of aircraft and missile weapons sites. He earned the Rank of Staff Sergeant.

He then attended the Security Police Academy at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, in which he earned the title of Honor Graduate and was awarded the Pennsylvania Commendation Medal. Officer Robbins received an Honorable Discharge from all three branches he served in.

Officer Robbins is a retired Pennsylvania State Trooper, who served for 23 years and spent his entire career in the Patrol Unit. He was promoted to Corporal in 1999 and was responsible for nearly every facet of daily operations in a State Police Troop. He was stationed all over the State from Bucks County to Wayne County.

Today, Officer Robbins serves as a School Resource Officer here at the Western Wayne School District and has diligently done so since 2013. Robbins is beloved by Western Wayne students and faculty alike. He has a very meaningful presence throughout the school keeping it safe and helping to guide students.

Robbins also has the honor of being the newest voice of the Western Wayne Wildcats at their football and basketball games where he has taken over as announcer after the passing of Western Wayne’s beloved veteran teacher Mr. Jim Rebar.

As Robbins talked to the students, he discussed his upbringing in Honesdale where he was one of seven children in what he described as an average family. Robbins went on to marry his high school sweetheart and have three children. He then explained his journey through the military. Next, Robbins told the students what the military had done for him and how it shaped him as a person.

“I discovered that there were things I never thought I could be capable of doing from my time in the military,” Robbins explained. “For example, I conquered my fear of heights. I had to jump out of helicopters in my time in the service. My time in the military really shaped my life.”

Robbins quoted “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” and discussed how he feels it is very meaningful to him as a veteran. He then told the students how important it is for them to be thankful for veterans and, if possible, for them to try to do service for the community to give back.

“We should live a life that we have earned from what was sacrificed for us,” he said. “It important for us to say thank you to veterans and to provide service to the community if we can.”

His closing words were very meaningful and memorable.

“God bless you,” he told all in attendance. “God bless America.”

Western Wayne Student Earns Certificate for Computer Science Work

Western Wayne Junior Lacey Falloon won second place for the Carnegie Mellon University Computer Science Academy Creative Task Challenge for its first unit of study.

Lacey is working through the course as a part of her computer science class at Western Wayne High School. Lacey explained that the task that won her the second place certificate was her coding of actor Leonardo DiCaprio’s face when he played Jack in the blockbuster hit Titanic.

She explained that he is one of her favorite actors, and she thought it was a unique idea for a coding task. Lacey loves the challenge of coding and has been spending time both in the classroom and outside of school on perfecting her coding skills.

“I like beating others to get a task complete,” Lacey explained. “I’m always trying to finish first.”

Along with trying to work on her coding speed, Lacey also constantly tries to come up with new creative ideas for coding.

“For my second unit task for the Carnegie Mellon course, I made stick figures climbing a ladder,” Lacey said. “For this project, my picture has to keep changing to different things. It takes time to create projects like this.”

When Lacey isn’t working on her programming skills, she enjoys doing projects for Future Business Leaders of America where her primary focus is accounting. Lacey likes to set goals to challenge herself in all of the work that she does.

“I like a challenge,” Lacey said. “When I finally figure out something with coding, I sit there and wonder why I didn’t figure it out from the start.”

Lacey looks forward to working on more coding projects in her course at Western Wayne. Western Wayne faculty, administration, and staff are proud of her accomplishments and can’t wait to see what she does next.

Western Wayne High School Students Attend FCCLA Regional Leadership Meeting

Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) from Western Wayne High School learned leadership skills, organizational skills, and project ideas while attending the FCCLA Regional Leadership Meeting on October 25^th at Reading Area Community College.

Members attended workshops on Leadership, Statewide Initiatives, Publicizing your Chapter, Safety, Family Consumer Sciences related topics, and State Officer Candidacy. During the meeting, local chapter members also learned about the PA FCCLA outreach project and the membership campaign.

Club advisor Lori Lucchesi, FCS Teacher, Western Wayne High School, explained how this is an exciting year for her students.

“We have built our club membership up this year,” Lucchesi explained. “The students felt excited to start the year off at the Regional Leadership Meeting and are now working on projects for the FCCLA State Leadership Conference in the spring.”

Western Wayne members expressed enthusiasm toward returning to their chapter with great ideas and lots of motivation for a successful year.

Freshman, Ashley Small Bermudez learned about FCCLA programs and competitions and stated, “The workshop taught me about a useful planning process that will help me organize community events and achieve my future career plans.”

Sophomore Katarina Wood explained, “I attended an FCCLA work session that gave me key strategies to balance my extracurricular and academic skills.”

Another sophomore Mackenzie Sheatler found it very interesting to learn about the safety of children at the conference.

“I like learning about how kids interact and child development,” MacKenzie, who aspires to be a social worker, explained.

Sinclaire Ogof, a senior and vice president of membership for Western Wayne, reported that “Twenty seven students attended the FCCLA Regional Leadership Meeting and our Western Wayne Chapter’s membership has tripled this year, totaling 52 students!”

All of Western Wayne’s FCCLA members are excited to work with this club throughout the year and some have already begun their projects for the State Leadership Conference to be held in the spring at Penn State Main Campus.

Sinaea Buford, FCCLA president who aspires to major in forensic science and minor in criminal justice, is working with fellow FCCLA member Sadie Nahman on a project for the category of event management for the State Leadership Conference.

The girls are working to plan a senior citizen prom for the local community. They wish to work with Wayne Woodlands Manor and Laurel Place on the event.

“I really like to work with the elderly,” Sinaea, who has volunteered at Golden Way Personal Care Home in Waymart, explained. “I like to make them happy by listening to them and making them feel like they are at home when they talk to me.”

Fellow FCCLA member Shailyn Pugh said she also hopes to do a service-based project for FCCLA this year.

“I like helping in the community and doing service projects,” Shailyn, who aspires to be a pharmaceutical technician, said.

Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America is a dynamic and effective national student organization that helps young men and women become leaders and addresses important personal, family, work, and societal issues through Family & Consumer Sciences Education and Related Occupations. FCCLA is unique among youth organizations because its programs are planned and run by members. It is the only national in-school organization with the family as its central focus. Participation in national programs and chapter activities helps members become strong leaders in their families, careers, and communities.