AP Highlights
December 1, 2019 #AP_EveryStudentEveryDay
Meeting the needs of and creating opportunities for every student every day.
STUDENTS PRESENT BUSINESS PLANS AT SHARK TANK
Students at Algonquin Middle School presented their Shark Tank ideas! Participating students developed companies, produced business plans and presented their ideas to two panels made up of school leaders and business leaders from the community, with the format similar to the television show “Shark Tank.” Read more here.
HALEY SURPRENANT PERFORMS AT ALL-NATIONALS
Averill Park High School student, Haley Surprenant, was selected to perform at the 2019 National Association for Music Education (NAfME) All-National Honor Ensembles in Florida. Read more here.
3 STUDENT-ATHLETES SIGN LETTERS OF INTENT
Three Averill Park High School seniors signed their National Letters of Intent to compete for Division I universities after graduation. Student-athletes Jess Haskin and Syd Haskin will both play on the Merrimack College women’s soccer team while Kelsey Wood will compete for the Sacred Heart University women’s basketball team. Read more here.
SCHOOL RELATED PROFESSIONALS RECOGNITION Q1
We are thankful for the outstanding work that our School Related Professionals do each and every day! Each quarter we are highlighting individuals who go above and beyond. Congratulations to everyone who has earned recognition for Quarter 1!
GOTR COMPLETES COMPLETES 5K
The Girls on the Run teams finished the fall 2019 5K at Jennings Landing in Albany! Every girl from each elementary school worked hard this season to reach their goals, become respectful and responsible, to work together as a team, and to encourage each other to be the best they can be!
HUDSON THE RAILROAD PUPPY VISITS WEST SAND LAKE ELEMENTARY
Hudson the Railroad Puppy visited West Sand Lake Elementary school with his handler, Richard Nash! Read more about the experience here.
PES HOSTS GRANDPARENTS & SPECIAL FRIENDS DAY
There is a long tradition of hosting grandparents and special friends at PES the day before Thanksgiving recess. Today we had a great turn out for a great event! The PTA hosted a wonderful breakfast that included pastry, quiche, coffee and juice. Thank you to Sarah Diamond, Aimee Laliberte and Kate Ratigan for hosting breakfast on behalf of PTA!
ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS COMPETED IN TASTEMAKER CHALLENGE
WSL's Mrs. Strano, MHSL Principal Mr. Denis Sibson and PES students Brealynn Bourgault and Peyton Catlin competed in the Tastemaker Challenge at 16 Handles. Each contestant made a combination of yogurt and toppings that they thought would reign supreme. Judges rated each dish on creativity, appearance and taste. Brealynn and Peyton won the 16 Handles competition and took home the first-place prize for Poestenkill!
MALLORY BOURGAULT TO PERFORM IN KRIS KRINGLE THE MUSICAL
Miller Hill-Sand Lake Elementary fourth grader, Mallory Bourgault, has been selected to perform the role of Zoe in Kris Kringle the Musical on Proctor’s MainStage during the upcoming holiday season! Mallory, who is in Mrs. Deo’s class, will also be singing in the children’s chorus. MHSL music teacher, Mrs. Lubbers, helped to inspire Mallory’s early love of music! Way to go Mallory!
ART STUDENTS ATTEND PORTFOLIO REVIEW DAY AT RUSSELL SAGE
Twenty students attended the 37th Annual Portfolio Review Day last week at Russell Sage College. During the event, students carried their art portfolio of 12-20 works of art and presented them to colleges and art schools from across the country. Students were given feedback on their artwork and were rated on the quality of their presented portfolio. In some cases, students were informally accepted into a college. Read more here.
GLOBAL CINEMA STUDENTS LEARN 1980S COMMUNICATION
Students in the APHS Global Cinema Studies class acquainted themselves with 1980s technology this week to better appreciate the communications methods used by East German dissidents portrayed in the movie Das Leben der Anderen (The Lives of Others). Mrs. Otty from the main office demonstrated professional typing techniques.
FACULTY ATTENDS STEAMing TOWARD SUCCESS CONFERENCE
Faculty members attended the Questar III BOCES STEAMing Toward Success Conference. Great job by all presenters, including Miss Caboot from Algonquin Middle School who presented on Invasive Species! The conference featured collaboration between educational and business professionals. The focus was to work together to inform students about STEAM opportunities. More than 250 professionals attended the full day of workshops.
PUMPKIN CHUCKING AT MHSL
Mini Pumpkin Chucking! Third gradersfrom Mrs. Perrotta’s, Ms. Grogan’s, and Mrs Reasor’s class at MHSL made a popsicle stick catapult and launched candy pumpkins to learn about force and motion. Students recorded data about how far their pumpkins went. Future APHS Physics students!
FACULTY RECOGNIZED AT STEM END OF YEAR CEREMONY
Congratulations to teachers Karyn Rees, Matt Duff and Terry Miller, all of whom were recognized at the Questar III BOCES STEM Summer Internship Program End of Year Ceremony. Superintendent Dr. Franchini and APHS principal Mr. Quiles joined the group at the event.
MARA, MARIO SPEAK AT ANNUAL BEST BUDDIES GALA
Mara Little and Mario Hepp were asked to speak at the Best Buddies Gala! Mara, chapter president, Mario (Mara's buddy) and Makayla, co-chapter vice president, attended the gala.
RENSSELAER COUNTY DONATES WINTER COATS
Students at Poestenkill Elementary School will be much warmer during the winter months this year thanks to Rensselaer County. County Executive Steven McLaughlin, along with Pierce Hoyt and Deborah Fleming of the Rensselaer County Youth Department, Mark Yonally, owner of B. Lodge & Co. in Albany, and Thomas Grant, Rensselaer County Legislator, delivered boxes of new winter coats to the school on Monday, Nov. 18 for students in need.
BREALYNNE, PEYTON NAMED PRINCIPALS FOR THE DAY AT PES
Brealynne Bourgault (4th grade) and Peyton Catlin (5th grade) were Principals for the Day at Poestenkill Elementary School and had a very busy day! Read more here.
AMS SKYPES WITH STUDENTS IN GREECE
Students in Current Global Issues at AMS Skyped with students in Greece to share their digital book on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Students were truly global communicators.
APHS AWARDS Q2 CITIZENSHIP PASSES
Congratulations to the students who were awarded Citizenship Passes today! Students were nominated by their teachers for being good citizens of Averill Park High School and received passes, which give them access to our Citizenship Courtyard for Quarter 2. Way to go everyone! See a full list of students here.
DIVERSITY, INCLUSIVITY TRAINING
District leaders participated in diversity and inclusivity training, led by The McLean Group.
PES STUDENTS GO ON AN ADVENTURE IN NUTRITION
New vegetables have been introduced to students this year and Poestenkill Elementary is having some fun this fall! New to PES are local peppers, local cucumbers, sweet potatoes, black beans, hummus, cinnamon roasted chickpeas, zucchini, broccoli, peas and cauliflower. Read more here.
CLAIRE FLYNN RECEIVES RAVE REVIEWS FOR ROLE IN MARY POPPINS
APHS senior Claire Flynn was the lead role in “Mary Poppins” at the Schenectady Light Opera Company’s Youth Production this fall. On the website, nippertown.com, Claire received rave reviews with the critic stating, “She is remarkable. Poised, polished and persuasively powerful… Her stature and bearing in this part are astonishing and might just make you forget the Oscar winner in this role, so powerful and different is Claire.” Read a full review here.
6TH GRADERS LEARN ABOUT CAREERS IN THE MEDICAL FIELD
Sixth grade students taking Medical Explorations got the chance to learn about some careers in the medical field from several guest speakers, including Bryon Backenson, Denise Nero, Lisa Frankoski and Cassandra Madson.
MISS NUGENT PRESENTED TO ASPIRING LEADERS
Averill Park CSD’s Director of Personnel Development, Kimberly Nugent, delivered a presentation at Questar III BOCES’ Aspiring Leader Series. Miss Nugent spoke about the interview and selection process, presenting on interview formats, best practices and strategies for aspiring school administrators.
DELANEY MUNYAN, CIERA SHERMAN GO ON CIVIL RIGHTS JOURNEY
Delaney Munyan and Ciera Sherman have started the ADL's Civil Rights Journey in Georgia and Alabama! The two Averill Park High School students arrived on Sunday, Nov. 17, and on Monday, Nov. 18 they headed to the Rosa Park Museum, Equal Justice Initiative's Legacy Museum and Lynching Memorial, as well as the Freedom Riders Exhibit. Read more here.
BUILDERS CLUB RAISES FUNDS FOR JUVENILE DIABETES
After raising more than $500 for juvenile diabetes, AMS Builder’s Club celebrated with Principal Messia wearing his turkey suit!
MHSL HOLDS SCIENCE FAIR
Miller Hill-Sand Lake Elementary held its annual Science Fair, sponsored by the PTA. We saw lots of interesting projects and presentations! Great job everyone!
PES HOLDS FRIENDSHIP FEAST
Poestenkill Elementary held its Kindergarten friendship feast! Students did fun Thanksgiving-themed centers and then joined together for the feast.
WSL HOLDS FRIENDSGIVING
West Sand Lake Elementary held its second annual Friendsgiving prior to the Thanksgiving break!
GRADES 4&5 READ TO KINDERGARTENERS
Miss Wood’s 4th/5th grade class at WSL reads to Ms. Ryan's Kindergarten class once a month. His month, students read Thanksgiving themed books to get everyone ready to celebrate the holiday!
FORMER STUDENT RETURNS, PRESENTS ON BATS
Jackie Jurs, SUNY Cobleskill sophomore and APCSD 2018 graduate, spoke to the Elementary students and high school science students about bat conservation in New York state. Read more here.
GLOBAL HISTORY STUDENTS SHARE FAMILY CULTURE
For their unit on Nationalism, Ms. Gerke & Mrs. Ferlito's Global History classes shared stories and pictures from their own nationalities! Students learned how to make pierogies and sampled food from different cultures.
RENSSELAER CHAMBER HOSTS WORKFORCE READINESS EVENT
APCSD Superintendent Dr. Franchini is attending a Rensselaer County Chamber of Commerce event: “The Future of Workforce Readiness - Education and Business Partnerships.” Discussion focuses on inspiring creativity & connecting education to business.
7 ATHLETIC TEAMS ACHIEVE SCHOLAR-ATHLETE STATUS
Congratulations to the following fall teams for being named NYSPHSAA Scholar-Athlete teams: Boys Soccer, Girls Soccer, Girls Volleyball, Boys Cross Country, Girls Cross Country, Girls Tennis, Boys Golf
LOGAN BARSALOW COMPETES AT NYS FEDERATION CHAMPIONSHIPS
APHS freshman Logan Barsalow placed 75th out of 249 runners in a time of 20:19.8 at the NYS Federation Championships!
THIRD GRADE STUDENTS COMPLETE DINOSAUR FOSSIL UNIT
Miss Brown's 3rd grade class at West Sand Lake had a great time completing their dinosaur fossil unit! To wrap up all new concepts that they learned, students worked together to put together dinosaur models, copying the ways of Mary Anning -- an English fossil collector and paleontologist who found fossils along the English Channel.
ARTS, LETTERS, NUMBERS HOLDS RECEPTION
The Artist Reception at Arts, Letters and Numbers was a big success with more than 50 people attending! Two months ago, 12 APHS Art students began with a weekly session and started talking about context, identity, spacial relations and narratives, and presented a showcase on the experience.
WORLD OF DIFFERENCE PEER TRAINERS VISIT AMS
The A World of Difference Peer Trainers put their newly acquired skills to work while conducting workshops in Mrs. Slyer’s 6th and 7th grade FACS classes. In the workshops, the students examined the nature and impact of bias and bullying on people, schools and communities.
WSL STUDENTS MEET WITH APHS MENTOR GROUP
West Sand Lake Elementary students met with their high school mentor group this week! Students worked on projects and had snacks.
COOKING CREATIONS CLUB CELEBRATES THANKSGIVING
Algonquin Middle School has a new club, Cooking Creations! The group of participating students met to make turkey snacks during the week before Thanksgiving. Everyone had a delicious time!
SCHOOLS COLLECTING HOLIDAY LETTERS FOR LUKE
Luke Hoag, a middle school student at Hoosick Falls CSD, is collecting holiday letters through Macy's Believe program to give back to Make-A-Wish. There are boxes in Poestenkill, West Sand Lake, Algonguin and the High School, where you can drop off letters. The letters are due on December 4. One letter equals $2 dollars to Make-A-Wish.
DONATIONS BEING ACCEPTED FOR MAKE-A-WISH
Once again, the students, families and staff of Miller Hill-Sand Lake Elementary are raising funds to support Make-A-Wish of Northeastern New York and their mission to grant life-changing wishes for children with critical illnesses. During the month of December we are accepting donations of $1 or more for the purchase of stars that will be displayed throughout our school.
PES PARENTS' NIGHT OUT ON DEC. 6
Friday, Dec. 6 is Parents’ Night Out at Poestenkill Elementary! Drop off your kids (ages 4-12) from 5:30-9:30 p.m. and enjoy a kid free night! Children will enjoy pizza, arts and crafts, gym time, a holiday movie, and time with their friends. There is a cost of $5 per child and $1 per slice of pizza. Read more here.
COUNSELING CENTER FINDS WAYS FOR COLLEGE/CAREER READINESS
The Counseling Center is continuing to look at ways to help students become more college and career ready. This year, we are asking all students to input their extracurricular activities in Naviance -- a college and career software program which APHS utilizes to support students in making their college and career choices. For most students, the username is their school email and the password is their school pin times two. Students can log in at https://student.naviance.com/averillphs
NEW VISIONS INFORMATIONAL ON DEC. 11 FOR JUNIORS
Any junior that may have an interest in the career paths offered by New Visions, and would like to learn more about the program, should come to the counseling center and sign up for the information session on Dec. 11 at 1:00 p.m. This meeting will lay out all of the expectations of the program and will have a question and answer period where all of your questions will be answered. New Visions offers four programs – Medical, Scientific Research and World Health, Visual & Performing Arts, and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math). Each program has its own location off our campus that students earn not only their remaining high school credits for graduation, but many college credits as well.
SUBMIT NEWS
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AVERILL PARK CSD
Website: averillpark.k12.ny.us
Location: 146 Gettle Road, Averill Park, NY, USA
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AverillParkCentralSchoolDistrict/
Twitter: @AverillParkCSD