Newfound Regional

January 2015

Principal’s Message

Happy New Year! At Newfound Regional, 2015 swings into Semester II after Mid-Year Exams the third week of January. Term III will begin on January 26th. But before that, an extremely important set of assessments will be given during the week of our Martin Luther King, Jr. Civil Rights Day Holiday. Students returning from the Christmas Holidays will have two weeks to finish Term II before taking these tests. They will need to transition quickly and get prepared to perform well. Parents can help. Tracking homework and reviewing project deadlines with students will support a high achieving finish to Semester I. Remember that Exam scores will influence all final grades. Let’s commit ourselves to continuing the upward trajectory of academic performance at NRHS. This would be a nice start making 2015 the best year yet!

YEARS

High School

http://nrhs.sau4.org

2010 NH Secondary School of Excellence

Hour of

Congratulations, Newfound, as a community we reached 107 hours of code during the Week of December 9th! That is 7 hours more than our goal. Having the largest percentage of participation were the juniors, and they will receive the prize of 4 large pizzas delivered during hallway decorating this winter carnival! Thank you to all the participants.

VOD Winners

The Annual VFW Voice of Democracy essay contest was held in November. Congratulations to Jesse Austin (first place), Ben Learned (second place), and Remmi Ellis (third place). Each student was awarded a cash prize compliments of our local VFW post. Additional kudos to Jesse who was selected as the district winner and will now represent the district at the State Competition.

Great Performance! The Class of 2015’s presentation of A Christmas Carol was a great success. Pictured are senior actors Jami-Lynn McClay and Isaiah Peabody as Mr. and Mrs. Cratchit. Looking on is Tiny Tim played by Bristol Elementary student Calvin Colby.

Mid-Year Exam Schedule Wednesday, January 21 8-9:30 Period 1 Exam 9:45-11:15 Period 2 Exam 12:30-2:30 Make-Up Exams

Thursday, January 22 8-9:30 Period 3 Exam 9:45-11:15 Period 5 Exam 12:30-2:30 Make-Up Exams

Friday, January 23 8-9:30 Period 6 Exam 9:45-11:15 Period 7 Exam 12:30-2:30 Make-Up Exams

January 2015 ~ Page 2

Two New Project Promise Clubs

Project Promise is excited to announce that they will once again be hosting a skiing and snowboarding club at Gunstock Mountain Resort. Project Promise plans to offer night skiing on Wednesdays. There are 5 dates scheduled beginning in January and ending March. There has been a large preliminary response to this program; and with a huge early snowfall back on Thanksgiving, it looks as if ski conditions will be exceedingly good for the coming season. You can get paperwork for this club from Mr. Sneider or from Ms. Fabricant. It is due by January 9. We need at least 15 committed students to offer the club. The Project Promise Mentor Club has also commenced. NRHS students are volunteering their time at the elementary and middle school Project Promise after school programs to mentor and help younger students become academically successful. If you are interested in being a part of this group, please see Mr. Sneider or Ms. Fabricant for details. The students from the high school who have already volunteered their time and energies are Alyssa Shaw, Allison Smith, Kim Armstrong, Kelly Poirer and Yuliya Hrabenko. These students should be commended for their efforts! The Project Promise Homework Club continues its operation Monday through Thursday from 3pm to 5pm in the library. This is a great place for students who would like extra help or a place to work quietly. There are qualified teachers in attendance every day for assistance in those hard to comprehend subjects. Currently, Ms. Johnson is there on Mondays and Thursdays, Mr. Dumont is there on Tuesdays, and Ms. Blake is there on Wednesdays. Additionally, Ms. Fabricant is available to help students in Homework Club by appointment. She enjoys tutoring students in English, French, Algebra I, and Geometry. We are also hoping to start an incentive program for Homework Club in the new semester! We encourage the students to take advantage of this valuable resource. Lastly, just a reminder that if you are contemplating coming to a club, you don’t need to have your paperwork before you attend. You can show up for the activity to see if you like it, and we can get verbal permission from your parent if you decide you would like to continue on a regular basis.

High School Years

Alumni Guest Speaker Visits Science Classes

James Gealy was a guest speaker to the chemistry and physics classes on November 25. Mr. Gealy, who grew up in Danbury and graduated from NRHS in 2004, attended UNH where he earned both a Bachelor’s and a Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering. As a result of his education, he has traveled the world; repairing research equipment from north of the Arctic Circle to McMurdo Station in the Antarctic. Mr. Gealy is currently employed with Orbital Sciences in Virginia. He works in Systems Integration which involves being the final person to prepare satellites on the day of launch. This job has continued his world Mr. James Gealy travels to rocket launches from French Guiana to the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Mr Gealy’s current assignment with Orbital Sciences is developing some of the navigational equipment for the Cygnus spacecraft which is being developed to provide resupply missions to the International Space Station. He is part of the Orbital Sciences launch team at their Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. After speaking to the junior and senior students, he was also able to field student questions about college admissions, how to take advantage of overlooked opportunities for undergraduate and graduate research in college, and life as an engineer. He also spoke directly to the engineering simulation in which the physics class is participating and how close to reality the simulation appears. As a “local boy”, his advice carries some authority. He sought to inspire students to pursue their dreams and to be willing to take advantage of every opportunity, “Go everywhere, meet everyone, do everything . . . “

Lakes Region Music Festival

The music department is pleased to announce that twenty students have been selected to participate in the Lakes Region Music Festival, scheduled for January 17 to be hosted at Winnisquam High School. The festival is open to the most outstanding band and choral students from throughout the lakes region. The students were nominated by their Music Director, Mr. Edward Judd. The students accepted to the Concert Band are Hailey McAfee and Catie Roman, Flute; Molly Croxon, Victoria Roman and Shanley Camara, Clarinet; Emmett Morrill and Hannah Barnett, Bass Clarinet; Shannon Perkins, Bassoon; Matthew Carlson, Tenor Saxophone; Page Dostie, Baritone Horn; Karissa Wolivar, Tuba; and Josh MacLean, Percussion. In the festival chorus, NRHS will be represented by Megan Gilpatric, Kim Armstrong, and Brianna Gromko, Sopranos; Kristina Cogswell, Patience Dudley and Tara Morin, Altos; Sean Holden, Tenor; as well as Keegan Fleming, Bass. The festival concert will include guest conductors Carolyn Whinnem for the Concert Band, David Wilson for the Jazz Band, and Madelyn Gearhart for the Chorus. The festival concert is scheduled for 4pm, on Saturday, January 17.

Math Department Update

The math department just completed another day of curriculum writing in an effort to align all of the courses offered at the high school with the Common Core Standards. As the work continues, the department members find themselves more and more submerged in the real meat of the math curriculum, and are pleased to see that the curriculum we have been offering may only need slight adjustments in order to be at the level needed. The math team was scheduled to host our very first home math meet on Wednesday, December 10th, but the weather conditions pushed it to a later date. It is exciting for our math team, having performed so well in the past, to host such an event. The meet has been rescheduled for January 14.

From Our Nurse’s Desk

By Barbara Kelly, RN BS Flu season occurs between October and May, peaking in January and February. The CDC predicts this to be a heavy flu season as our vaccine doesn’t cover all the strands of the flu. Prevention is the key to wellness. Please encourage your teen to wash their hands often with soap and water (alcohol-based sanitizers are less effective), avoid touching their eyes, nose or mouth, get plenty of sleep, eat healthy and drink plenty of fluids, cover your nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing with a tissue or the crook of your arm, and stay home after your fever breaks for 24 hours.

January 2015 ~ Page 3

High School Years

Athletic News

By Athletic Director Peter Cofran

The winter season is upon us and the basketball teams are working hard. The girls have 6 games before Christmas while the boys have 4. Both will participate in the Annual Gilford Holiday tourney on 12/27 and 12/29. If either or both teams win those 2 games, they will play in the Championship on 12/30. The ski team had 2 weeks of dry land training from 6:30-7:30 am and practiced on Ragged Mt. They will host their annul race on 1/9. Any people interested in volunteering at the race should contact Coaches Carl Anderson or Rebeccah Hilton or myself. The Sportsmanship ratings have been released for the fall sports. Football was determined by the coaches in Division III to have been the best as it relates to home game climate, and sportsmanship from coaches, players and spectators and finished first in the DIII rating. In fact, in the entire state of 57 football teams, Newfound finished 2nd, only to Dover, a Division I school. Newfound teams have had a number of student athletes recognized for their performances on their fall teams. In field hockey, Karissa Bony and Megan Sharp were named to 1st Team All State while Savanna Bony was named to 2nd Team All State. In soccer, Ben Learned was named All State Honorable Mention and in volleyball, Bridget Lavin and Carolyn Miller were both named to 2nd Team All State. The football team had junior, Noah Fogg, named to the North All Conference 1st Team as well as All State 1st Team from Division III. Randolph “Moose” Griffin was recognized on the All State Honorable Mention team. Abby Erler, ‘11, was named to the Division III All America team, as she finished an outstanding field hockey career at Montclair St, NJ. The varsity girls basketball team opened their season with a 56-30 victory over Franklin. Shauntaye Pumphret, ‘10, has returned to Newfound, after a very successful basketball career at New England College, to be our JV girls basketball coach. The JV’s were defeated in their game with Franklin. The boy’s basketball team hosted their Annual NIT Jamboree on Dec. 6th and opened on Dec. 12th.

Winter Carnival Theme Selected The tradition of Newfound’s Winter Carnival dates

back to February 1984. After 30 years, the event, organized by student council, has morphed into a fabulous week of activities with over 70 individual events. New this year will be the return of badminton and remote control car racing, as well as new games such as Battleship and Operation. Recently the council accepted nominations for the theme for 2015. After viewing the suggestions, the committee selected four. They were Newfound Gets Musical, Hogwarts, Rumble in the Jungle, and Newfound in Space. After the staff and students voted, Newfound in Space was selected. Congratulations to English Department chairman, Mr. Dave Harlow, for suggesting the winning theme.

Students of the Month

Appreciates the Advisory System

By Kayla Judkins, Class of 2015 Joining the Newfound team as a member of the 2014-2015 school year is Nicole Presley. Ms. Presley, who formerly taught at a high school in Maine, has become a member of the Nicole Presley Special Education Department. She was enthusiastic to share her experiences and goals with us. Thus far, she has enjoyed her time at NRHS. She is both thrilled and inspired by some of the characteristics we have developed as a school. When asked what component she enjoyed the most, Ms. Presley replied, “The advisory system here is very productive. It seems as if everyone has an organized goal and it appears to work well for the school body.” She is also pleased about the guided study program and positive climate of the school, stating that guided study seemed beneficial to students and their grades. All of her comments were positive with the statement that she had not found a negative thing to say about our system yet! Apart from what she enjoyed, we requested constructive criticism from our new member. “What I would like to see incorporated into the school is peer tutors in the classroom. This would lead to leadership by students and then students could get support from a peer,” declared Ms. Presley. She believes that the addition of senior mentors to freshman advisories could be a favorable improvement. Anyone may contact her at [email protected] or by calling 744-6006, Ext 320.

Principal O’Malley recently announced the Students of the Month for December. Each month students are selected by the subject area teachers to be recognized for his/her outstanding achievement in the individual academic areas or for promoting a positive school culture. Congratulations to those individuals selected this month. Music....Ethan Pruett Art....Kayla Judkins Physical Education..... Kylee Hanser Business.....Remmi Ellis Science....Brandon Paquette Computers..... Raegan Yarbrough Social Studies.....Dylan Martel-Leary English....Paige Lane World Language..... Victoria Roman Wellness.....Emma Lagueux Technology Education....Melissa Lyford Math.....Logan Frye Family & Consumer Science..Ashley Weatherbee Online Learning....Mike Howell Extended Learning Opportunity....Ben Sanborn Spirit and Service Award Rachel Bauer, Jacob Ewens, Dakota Goguen, Sean Holden, Alex Lowell, Isaiah Peabody, Emily Wolters The NRHS Spirit and Service Award is also presented to faculty member Laura Hutchins.

High School Years

January 2015 ~ Page 4

The One Acts are Coming! Upcoming Events: The One Acts are Coming! January 9 - NASD Budget Hearing (6:30) January January January January January January January

12 - NASD Board Meeting (6:30) 14- Early Release Day 19 - Civil Right’s Day - no school 21-23 - Mid-year Exams 29 - Report Cards Mailed Home 30 - One Act Competition (7 pm) 31 - First Deliberative Session (10 am)

January 31- Snow date for One Act Competition

Worth Quoting . . .

The 33th Annual ONE ACT COMPETITION Friday, January 30 ~ 7 pm

“The shortest day has passed, and whatever nastiness of weather we may look forward to in January and February, at least we notice that the days are getting longer. Minute by minute they lengthen out. It takes some weeks before we become aware of the change. It is imperceptible even as the growth of a child, as you watch it day by day, until the moment comes when with a start of delighted surprise we realize that we can stay out of doors in a twilight lasting for another quarter of a precious hour.” - Vita Sackville-West