Ponaganset News
APRIL
What's Happening at PHS!
Gold Star Family Monument. FFA fundraiser baking dog cookies for tornado relief.
Plant systems program attends New England hardscape expo in Hartford CT
FFA ice cream contest practice run
FFA Floral Competition
FIRST Robotics Competition Winner
Ponaganset Chamber & Concert Chorus
American Choral Directors Association Eastern Division High School Mixed Honor Choir
In February, Ponaganset High School had THREE students represent Rhode Island in the ACDA Eastern Division High School Honor Choir. Emma Fitts, Maija Spence, and Cassie Thomson were among 180 of the best vocal musicians from 11 states in the eastern part of the county.
Congratulations Emma, Maija and Cassie!
Rhode Island Music Education Association All-State Festival
On March 29th, Ponaganset High School students participated in the All-State Festival. PHS had students in the Junior Guitar Ensemble, Senior Jazz Ensemble, Junior Mixed Chorus, Seniors Orchestra, Senior Treble Chorus, Senior Band, and Senior Mixed Chorus. A special shout-out to Myles Realejo for being in the solo quartet of one of the pieces performed. Congratulations to all for a great return to in-person performances.
Rhode Island American Choral Directors Association State Choral Festival
Congratulations to the PHS Concert and Chamber Choruses for their performances at the RI-ACDA State Choral Festival. Both groups received a Superior (highest) rating. Thank you for your dedication and determination through the last two years.
CONGRATULATIONS!
RI Skills USA Competition
Rhode Island SkillsUSA Competitions happened on March 11, 2022.
The Awards ceremony was last night.
Ponaganset students won the following:
In Computer Programing:
Abigael Bousquet - 1st place - Gold Medal
Gabriel Nahod - 2nd Place - Silver Medal
Stater Leonardo - 3rd Place - Bronze Medal
In Carpentry:
Daniel Buckley - 3rd Place - Bronze Medal
First place winners have the chance to compete at the SkillsUSA National Competition held June 20-24, 2022 in Atlanta Georgia.
Ponaganset HIgh School Raises OVER $15,000 for the Special Olympic Polar Plunge
DECA goes to TD Garden
On Wednesday, March 23rd the DECA students attended the 24/7 Total Dan Experience at TD Garden . . . in conjunction with JWU.
The students are seeing first hand the “behind the scenes” operations that support the Sports and Entertainment Marketing and Advertising supporting TD Gardens sporting events.
5 DECA students are also members of the Ponaganset Hockey Team and Kelsey Wilson, forward for the RI State Championship Ladies team.
They were able to meet and speak to former NHL player and NESN analyst/commentator for the Boston Bruins, Andy “Brick” Brickley
They will have lunch, VIP tour, and hear from many of the leaders that make things happen at TD Garden.
The clothesline is located in the connector.
Let's celebrate Joseph Bucko, a retired Navy Vet who turns 102!
Ponaganset students came together with their teacher Victoria Serra and designed 102 cards for Mr. Bucko's birthday!
Joseph Bucko, 101 years old is a retired Navy veteran born on March 20, 1920. He enlisted the day after Pearl Harbor.
"He loves his birthday. One year, because of COVID, since we couldn't do anything big!" His daughter Joanne asked that people statewide who wanted to help them celebrate his birthday send him a card this year!
"This year, I figured I'll start it early and give him something to keep him busy. He loves to read and enjoys getting the cards."
Thank you for all your help & bringing our community together for such a great celebration!
Victoria Serra
PSAT (Grade 10) & SAT (Grade 11) Testing: Wednesday, April 13, 2022
Please mark your calendars. More information to be sent soon.
The Chieftain Corner
Grand Re-Opening of the Chieftain Corner School Store
Check out the re-designed (Grand Re-Opening) of the Chieftain Corner School Store
The Chieftain Corner will be open in person Tuesday, April 12 and Thursday, April 14 during all lunches. There will be a special section in the cafeteria for heavily marked down items for purchase.
You can also purchase items online anytime at our new website, https://thechieftaincorner.square.site/
The Chieftain Corner is where you can purchase official Ponaganset merchandise. Our clothing merchandise options that are available at our store include multiple different styles and colored sweatshirts and shirts ranging from long sleeve, short sleeve, and v-necks also in multiple colors, flannel pants, sweatpants, face masks, pom pom beanies, and baseball hats. Our non-clothing apparel includes blankets, chieftain key chains, drawstring bags, lanyards, pop sockets, reusable bags, and stainless steel tumblers.
Our store has inclusive sizing ranging from XXS to XXXL. The merchandise is high quality at good affordable prices. Some of our merchandise is made from Champion brand materials.
We are also now able to personalize your merchandise with name, number, year of graduation, etc. Stop by our website www.bit.ly/TheChieftainCorner to check out everything we sell or visit us in person during lunches on Thursday (green day).
We can also complete any custom orders for your sports team, club, etc. Just inquire by sending Mrs. Sanborn an email at msanborn@fgschools.com
You can order online 24/7 at https://thechieftaincorner.square.site/ and you can pick them up in the office.
OUR ITEMS MAKE FOR GREAT GIFTS ANYTIME OF YEAR!
The PHS DECA Club are selling Ponaganset Ties and Ponaganset Sunglasses. Click the link below to order yours!
Sunglasses
Ties
Thank you,
PHS DECA CLUB
PHS says GOODBYE to Resource Officer Andrew Uriati and Tate!
K9 Tate lights up the eyes of every student he comes in contact with.
Having K9 Tate in our school has given students the chance to experience things that they normally wouldn’t have the opportunity to do like walking a dog or playing fetch.
The students look forward to seeing Officer Uriati and K9 Tate every day at school!
Handmade Cards for all Occasions
Students and staff at Ponaganset High School are planning to continue making handmade cards for members of our community. Last year, over 400 handmade seasonal themed cards were delivered. We really enjoy bringing cheer to our community members.
The students and staff are very creative and passionate about this project. Like the students, each card is unique and carries messages of kindness and inclusion. We take pride in using recycled materials to make the cards and would love to continue to provide this community service for every holiday throughout the year.
We are currently accepting donations of materials such as; used greeting cards, card stock, scrapbook material, washable paint, gift bags, tissue paper, stickers etc. We love working with recycled materials and would make use of any craft items you have sitting on shelves and in drawers.
Please feel free to drop off any of these items to the main office at Ponaganset High School.
Spot Light on Ponaganset Athletics!
Congratulations Marcus Carpenter, Gilbane Award Winner
Marcus is the only player to win the Gilbane award in school history for Ponaganset High School and this is the highest honor any student-athlete can receive.
His accomplishments are
** In 3 seasons he ran for 4,552 yards and had 50 TDs
** As a Freshman he earned 2nd team All-Division Defensive Back
** 3-time 1st team All-Division Running Back
** 2-time Division MVP
** 3-time All-State Running Back
** 2021 - Super Bowl MVP
** 2021 - Gilbane Award winner
** Best Running Back in the state
** Player of the Year
** Running Back of the year
Congratulations Nick Viner, Defensive Lineman of the Year
Nick Viner also won Division Defensive Lineman of the Year and led the State in QB sacks with 23. He also had 61 tackles
** 2 time 1st team All-Division Defensive Lineman
** 2-time Division Defensive Lineman Of the Year.
Winter Athletics: Triple Winners!!
CONGRATULATIONS: Ponaganset Cheerleading DIVISION 3 State Champions!
The members of the Division III champion Ponaganset High cheerleading squad are, in front from left, Justice Gouin, Ella Dexter, Skyla Picard, and Sara Sepe; in back, Olivia Crum, Nicolina Diamanté, Payton Adams, Julia Bruno, Victoria Scungio, Celina Pimentel, Ava Polseno, Allison Berger, Olivia Santos, head coach Meghan White, and assistant coach Isabella Corio.
Read the Valley Breeze article here.
CONGRATULATIONS Girls Hockey Co-op DIVISION 1 State Champions!
Congratulations to our CO-OP girls hockey team on their Division 1 State Championship! 2-0 series victory over La Salle!!
Ponaganset Girls Basketball
Congratulations to our girls basketball RIIL State Tournament State Champions!
CONGRATULATIONS to our Girl’s Basketball State Champion! The victory came vs. Juanita Sanchez in the RIIL State Tournament! Fantastic season!!
Chieftains win first state title in girls basketball since 2001
SOUTH KINGSTOWN — Before any of the current members of the Ponaganset High School team were born, Foster/ Glocester was the capital of girls basketball in Rhode Island. The return to the mountaintop wasn’t easy.
Ponaganset moved up to Division I, earned a top-four seed and then suffered an early exit in the D-I tournament. The Chieftains used that loss as motivation and attacked the competition at the RIIL State Tournament with the same type of ferocity they played with all season. No egos. No superstars. Just good basketball.
Down five in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s state final against Juanita Sanchez, Ponaganset wasn’t fazed. They were trailed by more in the semifinals, and went on to win. The Chieftains kept their heads and closed the final 3:37 on a 12-0 run to lock up the 58-51 win and the program’s first state title since 2001.
“It’s a great feeling,” said Ponaganset sophomore Ella Pierre-Louis, who scored 10 points and had 22 rebounds in the win. “I didn’t want to lose our seniors’ last game, so it’s a great feeling to be state champs.”
“Getting knocked out early on [in the D-I tournament] was hard,” Ponaganset sophomore Jaina Yekelchik said after her 14-point performance. “We just took that as motivation and took it with us in the Open Tournament.”
The game was what a state championship game should be. Juanita Sanchez, the first Division II team to reach the state final, dictated the pace and controlled Ponaganset’s free-wheeling, run-and-gun offense.
Ponaganset’s biggest lead — before the game’s final minute — was six, coming in the first quarter. Juanita led, 22- 21, at the half, but the Chieftains took it back and were up, 36-33, after three quarters.
Then the fun started.
Led by All-Stater Genesis McNeill, Juanita Sanchez opened the fourth quarter on a 15-4 run and was up, 48-40, after Nysia Ortiz hit her second 3-pointer of the quarter. Ponaganset called a timeout and figured things out.
The Chieftains weren’t nervous. They were down 10 in the fourth against undefeated North Kingstown the day before, so eight was a walk in the park.
Who did the damage? The whole team. That’s how Ponaganset’s worked all season. Yekelchik did some scoring, as did Tournament MVP Samantha McFee. Pierre-Louis was a monster on the glass while Campbell Boyden came up with some big defensive plays.
McFee started the rally with a huge 3- pointer to cut the deficit to 51-49 with 3:37 left. Yekelchik made a free throw and, after another empty possession by the Cavaliers, Boyden took a pass from McFee to put Ponaganset up, 51-51, with 2:28 left. It was their first lead since the start of the fourth quarter.
“We all know who’s good at what,” Yekelchik said. “We all know our strengths and we play to our strengths.”
Ponaganset led, 54-51, with under a minute left when Yekelchik showed off her biggest strength — her fearlessness. The sophomore had the ball up top, drove hard to her right and cut to the basket, going in for a layup and a fivepoint lead with 47 seconds left.
“Sometimes I just go in and I don’t even know [what I’m doing]. I’m just playing for something,” Yekelchik said. “I always focus on finishing and I know my teammates are there to help me, whether or not I get fouled. I know I’m going to have the support whenever I do it.”
The Chieftains got a stop on the next play and made enough free throws down the stretch to close things out comfortably before celebrating on midcourt of the Ryan Center.
“It’s a great feeling,” Pierre-Louis said. “After all the work we put in, from winning [the regular-season] D-I thing to now state champs.”
Juanita Sanchez walked off the court upset with the result, but not with its season.
The Cavaliers were one of the best stories of the season. They finished second in the D-II standings, then rolled through the tournament to win the D-II crown last month.
A Division II team had never made the final four of the state tourney, never mind the final. The Cavaliers didn’t think of themselves as a D-II though; they were just a team on a mission.
“It was very special to us,” said Juanita’s Sabanna Berrios, who was named the team’s postseason MVP. “It was our first time making it here and it’s so crazy because we worked so hard since Day 1 of the season.
“Although we lost, we fought, and even when there was one second on the clock, we were still fighting.”
The hardest part of the loss? Saying goodbye to the seniors who helped get the Cavaliers here. Nysia Ortiz was a beast, hitting clutch 3s in the second half and being a force on the glass despite her size. Sa’Myra Pina was a leader and made plays for Juanita all season long. Jayviona Smith-Littlejohn filled whatever role the team asked.
“We definitely left it all out on this court and we’re going to get back here,” said Berrios, a junior. “We wouldn’t have been able to do this, any of this, without our seniors. It’s definitely a thank you to them, but we’ll try to get back here next season.”
Eric Rueb, March 14, 2022 Providence Journal, USA Today Network
2022 RIIL Coaches of the Year!
Congratulations to girls basketball coaches and educators Gary Martinelli and Ariana DiPaola on both receiving 2022 RIIL Coach of the Year awards!!
Mrs. Ariana DiPaola is the Head coach of the North Smithfield Lady Northernmen basketball team for the past 9 years. This past season, she led her team to the D3 state championship and finished the season with a 18-4 record.
Mr. Gary Martinelli has been the head coach of the Ponaganset Lady Chieftains for the past 19 years. This past season, he led his team to finish with a 22-4 record and won the 2022 RIIL RI State Championship.
Ponaganset Unified Basketball
Rhode Island Department of Health Updated Playbook
Parent Resource Center
Parent Portal
To Parent Guardians:
An email was sent out inviting you to log in to the Aspen Family Portal. The email contained a security code that you will use to set up your account, just follow the directions!
The reason only some of you will receive this is because we try to limit access to the portal to one login per family. If you have a family situation which requires an additional login, please contact your child’s school.
Once you login to Aspen, we are asking you to verify that you are seeing each of your children, and that other information is accurate as well. If there are issues with any of the information, pleased contact your child’s school to let us know!
Going forward we will be asking you to upgrade emergency contacts, update medical information, and parent phone numbers/email addresses. The portal will also be used to give you digital report cards, see student transcripts, as well as other information that is stored in Aspen.
Helpline 710-7500 ext 4357 (HELP)
Please review the links below for information and instructions.
Canvas & Aspen Parent Instructions for Viewing Grades
Link for instructions.
2021-22 Yearbook Order
Now is the time to order your 2021-22 yearbook for your child!
How to order a yearbook and/or and ad:
Go to: www.ybpay.lifetouch.com
Enter this code: 13539322
From there you will choose which of the above items you would like to order.
You may also create a student recognition ad for your child and/or purchase an ad for your business! Follow the same instructions given above to order an ad.
We need all orders in by May 31, 2022.
Healthy in body & mind means better learning, habits & relationships
Active April
Let's find ways to get moving and stay active and healthy.
GREAT DREAM
Everyone's path to happiness is different. Based on the latest research, we have identified 10 Keys that tend to make life happier and more fulfilling.
Together they spell GREAT DREAM and you can click to explore.
Family Literacy Corner
Family literacy is a type of literacy education that emphasizes bringing reading and writing into the home and making it a family activity. According to a study conducted by the National Center for Education Statistics, students with a “richer home literacy environment displayed higher levels of reading knowledge and skills than did their counterparts with less rich home literacy environments.”
Below you will find a resource that will provide current event articles and some discussion starters related to the articles. Reading an article a week as a family and having discussions over dinner will provide benefits that include: increasing literacy skills, engaging in family conversations, and enhancing knowledge of current events.
Link to Newsela: https://newsela.com/
(This resource offers a free basic version. There is a caregiver/parent sign up option)
Conversation starters:
Create and discuss your own headline for this article and explain why yours is better than the original.
Discuss the visuals given in the article and how they relate to the topic.
If a friend asked you, “what was that article about?”, how would you summarize it?
Ask the following questions to prompt meaningful connections between what was read and what is relevant to the student’s life:
What does this article remind you of?
Are there any elements of this article that are especially important to you and why?
What information from this article cleared up any confusion you may have had about this topic?
Contact information: If you are looking for more family literacy ideas, contact Associate Principal: Amanda Grundel @agrundel@fgschools.com
Fundraising Corner
Updated: 2021-22 Foster-Glocester Regional School District Calendar
Bus Information
If you have any questions or concerns regarding your students bus situation, below are the bus yard numbers:
Glocester Bus Coordinator
Kim Hopkins/Jackie Dussault 568-6206 X239
Bus Companies
Glocester: Jacques 568-8433
Glocester: Hopkins 568-5096
Foster: Ocean State 397-7415
Statewide Bus, Heather Hargis 304-9136Ponaganset High School Community Calendar
School Breakfast and Lunch Information
FREE Breakfast and FREE Lunch for ALL Students
Technology Corner
PHS Athletics: Twitter
PHS Athletics: Facebook
PHS Athletics: Instagram
Ponaganset High School
Email: rpalazzo@fgschools.com
Website: http://www.fg.k12.ri.us/
Location: 137 Anan Wade Road, Glocester, RI, USA
Phone: 401 710-7500
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=ponaganset%20high%20school%20chieftains&epa=SEARCH_BOX
Twitter: @reneepalazzo