The Eagle Eye Alumni Newsletter
Vol. 9 - SPRING 2022
WELCOME TO THE 9TH EDITION OF THE EAGLE EYE!
Egg Harbor Township Schools launched the Alumni Association for a few reasons:
- To find out what roads you chose to follow;
- To see where you are now in your careers and your lives, and what interesting steps you took along the way to get where you are today;
- To gauge your feelings on how Egg Harbor Township Schools prepared you for your journey.
We also want to know what you think we can do better NOW to prepare current students for their future!
WHAT'S HAPPENING IN THE SCHOOLS?
“I’m just really proud that we are doing this!” I think our students have a lot of EHT pride but sometimes that can be taken for granted and I think it’s important to see where we started and how we got here.”
-- Nardeen Saleep, EHTHS Class of 2020
DON'T MISS IT!
HAVE YOU EVER WONDERED ABOUT THE HISTORY OF EGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP SCHOOLS?
Join Us at 7pm, Thursday, June 9th in the Egg Harbor Township High School Auditorium for the documentary premiere of "EHTPride: a History of Egg Harbor Township School District."
Co-presented by the Community Partnership for Egg Harbor Township Schools, Inc, and Greate Egg Harbour Township Historical Society, the event was made possible through a generous grant from New Jersey Council for the Humanities.
Doors open at 6:30 pm. Admission is FREE! Please register via the Eventbrite link below:
ALUMNI PROFILES
MEET NARDEEN SALEEP, EHTHS CLASS OF 2020
Nardeen Saleep may have only graduated two years ago from EHTHS, but she’s already blazing a broadcasting trail for herself serving as one of the Executive Producers of Live at 6 on CitrusTV at Syracuse University (SU), the Co-Executive Producer of Noticias, and CitrusTV's Assignment Editor. She also spent some of her time off last summer serving as the lead investigative reporter, responsible for conducting all of the interviews for the soon-to-be-released grant-funded documentary on the history of Egg Harbor Township Schools.
“During my senior year at EHTHS I interned at the Greate Egg Harbour Historical Society. My idea was to make a documentary about the Township as a whole. When Covid-19 hit, everything got put on hold and I was never able to finish the project,” said Nardeen, a Broadcast & Digital Journalism and Political Science major. “We’ve been wanting to do a documentary project about the history of the school district for a long time. When we were selected for the grant, I thought it was a great opportunity to bring Nardeen back to work on the project,” said Dr. Leanna Mullen, District Data Analysis Specialist and former Manager of District Communications.
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“I feel like the Communications Academy at EHTHS really prepared me to dive right into CitrusTV while everyone else still had to learn the basics,” said Nardeen. “The classes I took at the EHTHS Communications Academy (COMM Academy) and the extracurricular activities I was involved in prepared me to work in a newsroom almost immediately at college,” she added.
While a student at EHTHS, Nardeen served as the Yearbook Editor-In-Chief, Key Club Bulletin Editor, and a member of the French and Pride Clubs. “I am very grateful to have had the teachers and experiences that I had in high school as I feel like I came into college already several steps ahead of most of my peers," she said.
"Mrs. Steet, Mr. Heenan, Dr. Mullen, and Mr. Gardner taught me everything I needed to know and more and helped me realize that journalism is what I want to do. Their impact on my high school experience and my life, in general, is absolutely immense and I will forever be grateful to them. Mr. Murphy gave me a certain sense of confidence in my abilities and made me think in ways I never thought to. These five teachers absolutely defined my experience at EHTHS and made it more than memorable,” said Nardeen when asked which EHTHS staff members best prepared her for her life and career upon graduation.
Q&A
Favorite EHTHS memories? “My favorite times in high school were lunch periods spent in Mrs. Steet and Mr. Heenan’s rooms with my Comm Academy friends. We were up to something wacky almost every day, and I admit we drove Mrs. Steet and Mr. Heenan crazy.”
What could EHTHS do better to prepare current high school students for the future?
“The super-specialized classes are the ones I feel prepared me the most, so I think more interesting, different classes that students are actually interested in and actively want to take would help prepare more students for the future.”
What would former EHTHS classmates be surprised to know? “I finally cut my hair and I’m never going back!”
Current Interests and Hobbies? “I’ve gotten a lot more into hiking and the outdoors!”
MEET KEVIN DANG, EHTHS CLASS OF 2018
While most students wait until they graduate from college to pursue their career goals,
Kevin Dang didn’t waste any time chasing his professional dreams and landing dual jobs in the Big Apple while still in school.
Poised to receive his bachelor’s degree in Journalism and Media Studies from Rutgers University–New Brunswick this spring, Kevin has already been working in the field as a photographer, videographer, and freelancer for Haseok Chung Studio and Susan Shek Photography in New York City, specializing in wedding, fashion and fine art photography.
Kevin was also recruited last summer by Dr. Leanna Mullen to work as a cameraman and drone operator as part of the EHTHS team tasked with filming, editing, and producing a documentary that captures the homegrown memories of Township residents and the history of Egg Harbor Township Schools.
“As college and my life were taking me in new directions, I realized there wouldn't be many opportunities for me to still reminisce and at least be somehow involved in my town’s history so I decided this would be a great opportunity both professionally and also in a fun way,” he said. “Figuring out how to tell the story, while the story is shifting as we’re shooting it is challenging,” he said. “We had an abundant amount of information but to try to translate it on camera and to try to make it into a story – that’s incredibly hard,” said Dang, who is proud of the final cut and his work on the project.
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Kevin feels his EHTHS education prepared him well for his future endeavors. “I was more impacted by the teachers I had while I was in High School,” he said. “Their stories and experiences were invaluable in pushing me to be the best thinker I could be. I was very fortunate to have had teachers who were encouraging and supported my growth as an individual without suppressing my aspirations or dreams.”
Q & A
What would his former classmates be surprised to know about him?
“I chased my dreams and made it to New York City!”
Which EHT Staff Members best prepared you for life and a career upon graduation?
“Dr. Leanna Mullen, Mr. Joshua Brown, Ms. Julie Reinhardt, Mr. Harry Kiedasch”
What could EHTHS do better to prepare current high school students for the future?
“Give students the spark to be curious about learning! Especially about their interests and things that bring them joy. Formal education will give anyone a degree and job but self-education will take students further in the future.”
Current interests/hobbies:
“Photography, cinematography, Yo-Yo’s, watching movies, bowling, going to the gym and keeping an active lifestyle, spending time with family and friends.”
- Leanna Mullen
WOW! PRESS PLAYER AND TEAM OF THE YEAR!
BE A PART OF THE EHT STRATEGIC PLANNING COMMITTEE!
FULL DAY KINDERGARTEN!
HOW CAN YOU SUPPORT EHT SCHOOLS?
EGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP EDUCATION FOUNDATION GOLF TOURNAMENT: MAY 9TH
To make a donation to the EHT Education Foundation visit: https://www.eggharbortownshipeducationfoundation.org/
To Learn More about the Community Partnership for Egg Harbor Township Schools
Follow the Community Partnership for Egg Harbor Township Schools, Inc. at https://www.facebook.com/communitypartnershipEHT/ and the Egg Harbor Township Education Foundation at https://www.facebook.com/EHTEducationFoundation/ to learn about upcoming events they are planning that benefit student scholarships, teacher mini-grants, capital projects, extra-curricular activities, instructional technology, and academic enhancement.
To donate to the Community Partnership for EHT Schools, Inc. visit:
SEND US YOUR CLASS REUNION NEWS via email to: gregorye@eht.k12.nj.us
WOULD YOU LIKE TO BE FEATURED IN AN UPCOMING EDITION OF THE EAGLE EYE?
SHARE YOUR STORY!
Maybe you chose a traditional academic path, or perhaps you took the road less traveled and blazed your own trail. Regardless of how you got to where you are today, we are grateful to you for putting Egg Harbor Township School District on the map, making a difference in the world, and for helping us become better educators. In each edition, we hope to share your stories, inspire opportunities for you to reconnect with us, and invite you to participate in exciting things happening in the Egg Harbor Township School District.
PLEASE SEND EMAIL INQUIRIES TO: alumni@eht.k12.nj.us
EHTHS Alumni Office
13 Swift Drive
Egg Harbor Township, NJ 08234
(609) 646-8441, ext. 1017
Email: alumni@eht.k12.nj.us