Western Wayne to Host Cavalcade of Bands on Wednesday, October 11

The Western Wayne School District will host a Cavalcade of Bands event on Wednesday, Oct. 11, at their football stadium starting at 6:30 p.m. Many local schools will present their field shows with Western Wayne set to perform their disco-themed show as the final performance. There will be food and other merchandise available for sale at the event. The public is invited to come out and support local marching bands. Pictured are members of the Western Wayne Color Guard wearing their YMCA costumes. From left, sitting: Ellen Dwyer, Gabby Velez, Kate Hirsch, Bri Trutt, Rachael Harsch, Hudson Malinowski, and Logan Smith. From left, standing: Sydney Ely, Carleigh Galliford, Addie Treibley, Becca Boots, April Bresee, and Kayla Peirce.

Students Attend Women in Science Symposium

The third annual Women in Science Symposium was held on September 19 at the Heritage Night Club at Woodloch Resort. It was hosted by the Wayne Pike Workforce Alliance and the Lacawac Sanctuary& Biological Field Station.

The purpose of the event was to give students, like women, minorities and other underdeveloped groups, information on STEM career paths, which stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics education. Students met with representatives from local colleges to discuss career options, hear presentations from female, working professionals and had the opportunity to speak with these professionals after the presentations finished.

Female students in grades 8 through 10 at Western Wayne along with other students from various local districts attended the event. From left, Western Wayne Middle School students who attendend the third annual Women in Science Symposium: Ally Bien-Aime; Miss Elizabeth Watson, assistant middle school principal; Jenny Guadagno; Rachel Hoch; and Sarah Collins.

Public Asked to Donate for Hurricane Victims at Homecoming Game Friday, Sept. 29

Along with the usual traditions of crowning a homecoming king and queen, students at Western Wayne are focussing on giving back to others this week as a part of their homecoming celebration. The Wildcats are asking students, staff, and the community to bring items to aide hurricane victims to the Friday, September 29, Homecoming Game. Mike Biondi; owner of Team Biondi LLC, Lake Ariel; has donated a truck to be used to hold all of the goods and will then transport it to where it needs to go to help those in need at the conclusion of the drive. Please help our students to “Stuff the Truck!” Suggested items are cleaning supplies, school supplies, paper products, nonperishable food, and baby supplies. Also, items can be delivered to the High School Office, Middle School Office or EverGreen Elementary School Office through October 13. Finally, there is a Homecoming Tailgate for all High School students from 3 p.m. until the start of the football game this Friday night in the High School parking lot area. There will be music, food and drinks provided for students, including chili from the chili cook-off made by faculty and staff. From left, members of the homecoming court: Dominic Corma; Abigail Zeiler; Kaitlyn Juhasz; Marty Spewak; Jennifer Bradley, assistant high school principal; Paul Gregorski, high school principal; Cole Fuller; Lilli Millon; Ryan Cavage; Kirstin Metschulat; Nick Koch; and Katelin Dennis.

WW National Merit Commended Student

Spencer Smith, Western Wayne senior, has been named a Commended Student in the 2018 National Merit Schloarship Program. Paul Gregorski, high school principal, has presented Spencer with a Letter of Commendation from the school and National Merit Scholarship Corporation. About 34,000 Commended Students throughout the nation are being recognized for their exceptional academic promise. Although they will not continue in the 2018 competition for National Merit Scholarship awards, Commended Students placed among the top 50,000 scorers of more than 1.6 million students who entered the 2018 competition by taking the 2016 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test. Western Wayne Administration is proud of Spencer’s achievements. Along with being a three year National Honor Society member, Spencer is lead programmer and vice president of the Robotics Club and runs the Computer Club. He wishes to attend Lehigh University with a dual major in electrical and mechanical engineering. From left, Jennifer Bradley, assistant high school principal; Spencer Smith, Commended Student in the 2018 National Merit Scholarship Program; and Paul Gregorski, high school principal.

Masankay Receives Outstanding Chemistry Teacher Award

Mrs. Maria Masankay, chemistry teacher at Western Wayne High School has been unanimously selected by the executive council of the Susquehanna Valley Section of the American Chemical Society as the recipient of the 2017 Ronald C. Blatchley Outstanding High School Chemistry Teacher Award.

This award recognizes a high school chemistry teacher in the section who is passionate about chemistry as a science and works diligently to pass that passion on to their students. The award winner is also someone who consistently supports and encourages student participation in annual ACS events such as ACS high school exams and National Chemistry Week programming. The award consists of a plaque, a $100 check and the offer of reimbursement for up to $500 for registration and travel to a national conference related to chemistry education.

The plaque is usually presented during National Chemistry Week in October. The $100 check is presented at the section’s annual awards banquet in May of the following year.

Mr. Bill Dougherty, chair of the Susquehanna Valley Section of the American Chemical Society, will visit Mrs. Masankay’s chemistry class in late October and present her with the award plaque. From left: Jennifer Bradley, assistant high school principal; Masankay; and Paul Gregorski, high school principal.

3rd Annual Women in Science Symposium Attended by Students in Grades 8 -10

Courage, fearlessness and determination are not just qualities that professionals in careers like law enforcement need. These are just some of the attributes Western Wayne students, who attended the Women in Science Symposium, learned are necessary when taking on a career in the ever-expanding science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields that are predominantly male.

Female students from Western Wayne High and Middle Schools had the opportunity to attend this event which was hosted by the Wayne Pike Workforce Alliance and the Lacawac Sanctuary& Biological Field Station. Students from local schools gathered at the Heritage Nightclub at Woodloch Resort on Tuesday, September 19, for an information-filled day.

The purpose of the event was to give students like women, minorities and other underdeveloped groups information on career paths consisting of STEM which stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics education. Students got to meet with representatives from local colleges to discuss career options, hear presentations from female, working professionals and had the opportunity to speak with these professionals after the presentations finished. Pictured are Western Wayne students in grades 8 through 10 who attended.

Students Create Fun For Elementary Students for Homecoming Week

The Western Wayne Pride Committee run by teachers and administration gathered a group of eager high school and middle school students to paint rocks to be hid throughout the community for Western Wayne elementary students to find. Elementary students who find the uniquely creative rocks will then have their pictures taken and posted on the Western Wayne Website. This is just one of many activities students will participate in during the time leading up to Homecoming which will take place at the home football game on Friday, September 29. From left: Emma Dwyer, Becca King, Becca Boots, Harry Martinez, R.J. Clemens, Lily Visceglia, and Hailey Robbins.

EverGreen Elementary to Host Second Annual Community Market Day

A few songs from classic musicals, drum line music, and colonial songs played on fifes and drums will all be performed by Western Wayne High School students at the second annual Community Market Day to take place this Saturday, Sept. 23 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the EverGreen Elementary School.

This event benefits the EverGreen Parent Teacher Association and is free admission. There will be about twenty local vendors at the event selling homemade crafts and other items.

Performers will entertain the crowd from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The line-up includes: Lynnette’s Twirlerettes, Twin Dragons Martial Arts, Spotlight Performers, the Western Wayne Drama Club, the Western Wayne Drum Alliance, and the Wayne County Fife and Drum Corp. Many of the performance groups will also have tables at the event where they will offer information about their organizations and sell goods.

One such group is the newly formed Western Wayne Drama Club. The club is new this year at the district and is open to students in grades 8 through 12. For this first performance, high school students will be featured singing songs from past Western Wayne shows such as Bye Bye Birdie, Shrek and Seussical.

The students will end their set with a song from their upcoming musical comedy Nice Work if You Can Get It, which will premiere the last weekend of April in the newly renovated high school auditorium. Drama club students participating on Saturday include: Ty Alpaugh, Lindsey Karwacki, Honour Shaffer, R.J. Clemens, Hailey Robbins, Jill Jones, Lily Visceglia, Jake Jones, Rhonda Fenkner, Victoria Petrosky, Becca King, and Emily Barone.

Junior Lindsey Karwacki will perform with two groups at the event. Along with singing with the Western Wayne Drama Club she will also play percussion with the Western Wayne Drum Alliance.

The group is composed of Western Wayne student musicians: John Kear, Mason Coccodrilli, Taylor Altenhofen, Katherine Moore, and Lindsey. Jacob Slomian, Western Wayne alumni, will also perform with the group.

John Kear hopes the audience will appreciate the many genres of music the Western Wayne performing groups will bring to Community Day.

Along with playing in the Drum Alliance, John will also play old-time colonial music with the Wayne County Fife and Drum Corp.

John founded this group and decided to use his work with it for his senior project at Western Wayne. John explains that he always wanted to form a group to play this type of classic music.

His friends, all Western Wayne students or alumni, make up the ensemble: Mason Coccodrilli, Jacob Slomian, Katherine Moore, and Amanda Herold.

The group recently played at the GDS Fair and look forward to their second performance at Community Day. They plan to play songs such as “Yankee Doodle” and “Road to Boston” among others.

John looks forward to what promises to be a great day for family fun in the local community on Saturday.

“I hope that people will come out to hear the unique songs of our group and all of the other talented groups scheduled to perform at Community Day.”

Front row, from left: Haily Robbins, Emily Barone, Becca King, and Victoria Petrosky. Back row, from left: Jake Jones, Lily Visceglia, Honour Shaffer, Rhonda Fenkner, Jill Jones, R.J. Clemens, and Lindsey Karwacki.

Western Wayne Drama Club students rehearse for the EverGreen Community Market Day event with assistant musical director Sarah Calabro.

Drama Club Hosts First Fundraiser

Western Wayne’s newly formed student Drama Club held their first fundraiser this past weekend on Sunday, Sept. 17 at Ray’s Shursave in Waymart. Students washed cars and sang songs for donations from the community. The students are very grateful to all who helped with the event and those who came out to support them. They raised over two hundred dollars. The club plans to meet throughout the school year to have various acting, dancing, and singing workshops along with other activities voted on by students. From left: Lindsey Karwacki, Hailey Robbins, R.J. Clemens, and Becca King wash cars at the Drama Club’s recent car wash.

Ty Alpaugh and R.J. Clemens washed cars this past Sunday, Sept. 17, to fundraise for the newly formed Western Wayne Drama Club.

From left: Sydney Peet, Madison Kapschull, and R.J. Clemens worked at the Western Wayne Drama Club’s recent car wash fundraiser.

High School AP Biology students visited Lacawac Sanctuary and Biological Field Station

On May 22^nd the Western Wayne High School AP Biology students visited Lacawac Sanctuary and Biological Field Station. Students had the opportunity to engage in field research in the area of Aquatic Freshwater Ecosystems. During the course of the visit students collected and analyzed data from two aquatic ecosystems at the station, Lake Lacawac and a pond located in an adjacent watershed. Students collected data through various methods including collecting and analyzing macroinvertebrates, chemical testing of pH, dissolved oxygen, phosphates, and nitrates, measuring clarity of the water using a sechi disk, collecting zooplankton using nets and row boats, analyzing water temperature and observing natural habitats common to each aquatic ecosystem. Students then had an opportunity to analyze their samples. These rich field experiences allowed students to really understand the characteristics of a stable ecosystem.

In between research sessions students had an opportunity to hear from Dr. Sarah DeVaul Princiotta, the Director of Research and Education at The Lacawac Sanctuary and Biological Field Station. Dr. Princiotta shared her pathway to her degree and career as well as an overview of her research on protistan dynamics and diversity.

Please take a minute to view the attached PDF file with pictures and descriptions from our trip. We would like to thank Mrs. Jamie Reeger and her staff for organizing, coordinating and creating such rich learning opportunities at Lacawac for our students, Dr. Princiotta for sharing her research and her career pathway with our kids and PA Association of School Retirees for providing the grant opportunity which financed the field trip. We would also like to thank our administration for their support of this trip. We look forward to working with Lacawac in the future as we continue to promote scientific research and career pathways in our community. Download the formal presentation here with pictures.