Freeport High School Hosts Cheerleading Competition
The Long Island Cheerleading Coaches Association (LICCA) held its 12th Annual Varsity and Junior Varsity Cheerleading Competition at Freeport High School, with the Freeport Devils taking on Mepham, Kellenberg, Seaford and Bellmore JFK, among other Long Island high schools, in the Large Varsity category. The annual competition ended with Freeport placing 7th overall. “We had two falls, so we unfortunately didn't do as well as we usually do,” said Freeport cheerleading coach Laurie Kolodny. “We have also placed 4th and 3rd this year, which qualifies us for the Long Island Championships at Suffolk Community College on February 4.”
Freeport High School has a longstanding tradition of producing high-ranking teams in the cheerleading competitions. Over the past few years, the Freeport cheerleaders have competed on both the regional and national levels. Locally, they are an enthusiastic presence at Freeport High School’s varsity football and basketball games. Freeport High School graduate and New York Jets offensive tackle D’Brickashaw Ferguson is among the sponsors of the Freeport team.
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Freeport Students Dance Their Way to Better Cardio Health
Fifth-grade students at Atkinson Intermediate School are getting into better cardio shape by enjoying a tech-savvy dancercise activity introduced by physical education teacher Timothy Thom. By combining a SmartBoard projector, his personal Xbox 360 and the game “Dance Dance Revolution,” students participated in an invigorating, pulse-pounding school activity that helped to fulfill the promise of Cardio Wellness Month at the school. “Dance Dance Revolution,” when calibrated properly, can track the foot movements of students as they try to imitate the dance steps of the software-generated characters. When the music stops at the end of each song, the game software reveals how closely the steps and moves were imitated and presents a competitive score. While the number of participants who are scored is limited to two at a time, the entire class can participate by dancing along for fun and exercise.
“When we work in unison, we get a high score. Give one hundred percent and it’ll be exciting and fun,” coaxed Mr. Thom in his explanation of the activity to the fifth-grade dual language classes who participated. Bringing the SmartBoard projector into the gym made the experience all the more unique, interesting and exciting for the students, who will do this activity three or four times during Cardio Wellness Month.
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New Visions Students Present Independent Study Projects (ISPs)
New Visions students take the goal of becoming “college ready” very seriously. In Project Challenge, second, third, and fourth-grade students prepared proposals and conducted research modeled after college-level research projects. These projects called Independent Research Projects (ISPs) were introduced to New Visions students last year by enrichment teacher, Dr. Marie Codispoti. The goal was to encourage students to become more familiar with the process and to embrace the prospect of learning about topics of interest through independent research. The project began with one research question that was eventually answered after smaller, sub-questions were researched and answered. Students chose a topic that had been taken directly from the grade-level curriculum maps in social studies and science, and worked for several months with Dr. Codispoti developing their research skills, gathering their data and interpreting their findings. Most students agreed they were “so nervous” when they had to defend their work, but each of them impressed their teacher and the parents who were able to attend. Congratulations to New Visions’ future scholars!
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Recent Graduates Return to Advise Seniors
More than forty recent graduates from Freeport High School returned to their alma mater to lend words of advice and support to current seniors as they prepare for their college careers. “When you go to college you have to manage everything, including your time and especially your money,” joked Jorge Villao, who is studying architecture at NYIT. He and the other FHS grads, now studying at a myriad of schools including Brown, SUNY Stony Brook, St. John’s and Adelphi, shared their experiences with regard to obtaining financial aid, spending money on textbooks and food, choosing roommates, and making the best academic choices. “You have choices out there, even if your grades are not the best. I’m in NYU now,” said Lindsey Johnson, recalling the ups and downs of her own experiences during the college application process.
The alumni’s visit was arranged through the College Student Network, a program organized by the Freeport Schools Guidance Department. The network’s goal is to enlist recent Freeport High School graduates to come and speak about college life while they are on their winter break, so that the students slated to graduate in June can learn from the relating of their experiences. The high school students also get the opportunity to ask questions during and after the visit.
“We are very pleased at how many recent graduates agreed to come back. It shows how much they care about Freeport High School and the positive experiences they had here,” said Freeport Schools Guidance Chairperson Emma Perdomo. “When you graduate and get to college and face some of the realities outside of Freeport High School, you realize what a great place this is,” added Johnson.
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Freeport High School Welcomes Newcomers
Freeport High School welcomed current eighth graders and their parents to its annual Open House, an evening designed to inform and reassure students that their transition into high school will be smooth and well-administrated. “We have a very progressive school program and a caring staff,” noted Freeport High School Principal Ernest J. Kight in his opening remarks to those gathered in the school auditorium.
Parents and soon-to-be freshmen were given the opportunity to attend their choice of four different informational sessions from among the sixteen offered. Each session lasted ten minutes and covered various aspects of the Freeport High School experience, including academics, guidance, athletics, research, Student Congress and the National Junior ROTC. A 52-page booklet was provided that detailed course selections, graduation requirements and after-school clubs and activities. “Our students can excel in academics, athletics and the arts. It’s great when the family can take advantage of all we have to offer,” said Superintendent of Schools Dr. Kishore Kuncham.
Class of 2012 Valedictorian Brea Baker also addressed the students and their families, speaking on behalf of the National Honor Society. “Stay focused and stay driven, because these four years are the most important ones of your life,” she advised.
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Giblyn’s Littlest Volunteers Collect Toys for Freeport Tots
The students in Pat Vollkomer’s third-grade class at the Leo F. Giblyn Elementary School were determined to help the needy this year, and in doing so united their entire school in an effort to collect donated toys for a good cause. Their inspiration came from an in-school reading of “The Littlest Volunteers,” written by Danielle Speckhart. The story encourages children to get active in helping others, in the hopes that exposing children to volunteerism at an early age will encourage willingness to volunteer in the future.
The students decorated collection boxes to make them look like chimneys, resembling the kind a sidewalk Santa might use, to store donated toys during a collection period that lasted for several weeks. Over 160 toys donated at Giblyn School were earmarked to benefit “Toys for Freeport Tots,” a program organized by Freeport police detective Patrick Franzone on behalf of the Freeport PBA. With the help of school district social workers, over 600 invitations were sent to needy families to help brighten their holiday season with toys for their children. Board of Education Trustee and member of the Freeport Police Department Michael Pomerico along with Superintendent of Schools Dr. Kishore Kuncham and Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum Dr. Wafa Westervelt were on hand to help box the donated toys.
“I am so very proud of what they did,” Mrs. Vollkomer said of the class effort. “We truly worked as a team, and everyone did something.” The program, which has involved schools in Freeport for ten years, placed collection boxes in the following school buildings: Leo F. Giblyn, New Visions, South Bayview Avenue, Archer Street, Columbus Avenue and Caroline G. Atkinson Intermediate.
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Students Conduct Advanced Science Research
Freeport High School science students have taken their intensive research of aluminum corrosion to a higher level by employing the use of a very powerful and advanced scientific instrument located at The Brookhaven National Laboratory on Long Island. The five students working on the project interacted with laboratory technicians at the National Synchrotron Light Source (NSLS) via webcam from Freeport High School. They remotely guided the lab workers through the viewing of the results, discussed details of the photo images from the experiment, and asked pertinent questions about the resulting data. Freeport is the first district in Nassau County to be awarded beam time using both x-rays and infrared imaging the NSLS.
“We’re investigating the corrosion of aluminum using the National Synchrotron Light Source so that we can attempt to answer the fundamental questions regarding aluminum corrosion that have defeated chemists for many years,” noted District Coordinator for Science Dr. Vincent Pereira. The five students involved in the project are Emerick Martin, Justin Millan, Sarah Ann King, Lauren Workman, and Wilsa “Abby” Albert. Ms. Albert, the team leader of the research, added, “They use infrared microscopes and x-rays to look at [the corrosion], things that aren’t accessible to high school students. This gives us the ability to collect that much more data.” The students took advantage of two separate online visits to advance their research.
The cost of building the NSLS and its related facilities totals over $1 billion. For the past 25 years, the NSLS has been the exclusive domain of scientists. During the past decade, two Nobel Prizes in chemistry have been awarded to scientists that have used the NSLS at Brookhaven.
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Empowering Girls One Backpack At A Time
When Brea Baker was just thirteen and a student at J.W. Dodd Middle School in Freeport, she was inspired enough by the community service ideas she had seen on the Oprah Winfrey show to try to start her own organization to help people. Now Miss Baker, a Freeport High School senior and school valedictorian, finds herself making a difference as the CEO of the Head 2 Toe Foundation, a group committed to helping young ladies locally and around the world.
The event held last week at J.W. Dodd Middle School was called Packed to Empower, and the goal was to enlist volunteer groups to help fill one thousand backpacks with donations of first aid kits, school supplies, clothing, writing journals, and other items to help girls who have suffered through disaster and hardship. Some of these backpacks will be distributed in Freeport, while others will be sent to places as far away as Japan, Rwanda, Ukraine, and Australia.
Prior to the packing, there was a brief ceremony that acknowledged Miss Baker’s achievements. “I am delighted and honored to be here. Everyone here this morning has been on a journey to make a difference, to make the future of this world a better place,” noted Freeport Schools Superintendent Dr. Kishore Kuncham. “I believe in my heart that you have started a global movement,” said Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction Dr. Wafa Westervelt.
The school gym was dotted with tables top-heavy with donated items ready to be packed. “We have gathered to say that we will do our best to put a smile on the faces of young ladies around the world, and to let them know that someone is not only thinking about them but praying for them,” said Brea Baker in her rallying speech just before the packing began. Among the financial supporters listed were The Women’s Fund for Long Island, United Way, and Hofstra University. The volunteers on hand to help pack the bags came from Freeport and other parts of Long Island, including groups representing Syosset, Westbury, and Uniondale.
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Future Business Leaders Attend Conference
On Thursday, December 1, 2011 Mrs. N. Hawthorne and Mrs. M. Algeria escorted ten Freeport High School business education students to Adelphi University where they participated in a business conference. The students were among more than 200 chosen to participate from schools throughout Long Island. Teams consisting of students from different schools were each presented with a case study. Each team was assigned the task of developing a business plan, using the four P’s of marketing: Product, Price, Placement, and Promotion, to create a product that would compete with the Amazon Kindle. Each team was allocated five minutes to present their marketing strategy to the judges. After all the teams had completed their presentations, three teams were selected to present to the entire group. One Freeport High School student, Alex Robb, was a member of one of the three winning teams. This was a great learning experience for all who participated. Congratulations to all who attended:
Kai Bowden
Jessica Collado
Kaitlyn Karp
Charnelle Miller
Irene Muniz
Alex Robb
Elena Sparaco
Jonathan Valerio
Taylor Walker
JaSaun Young
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