- Mount Sinai School District

Volume 32, Issue 2
Reflections From Our Schools
THE NEWSLETTER OF THE MOUNT SINAI
UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT
Winter 2009
MOUNT SINAI ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
Grades K – 4
Dr. John Gentilcore
Principal
T
Ms. Elizabeth Hine
Assistant Principal
Spirit Week
Homecoming Parade
he week preceding Homecoming is a time for
teachers and students in the Elementary
School to show their spirit by participating in various daily
activities such as Twin Day, Favorite Sport Team Day and
Black and Red Day. Pictured below are teachers Ms.
Erath and Ms. Roode dressed as twins.
The Elementary School chose Dallas as their city
theme this year. Cowboys and Cowgirls from Kindergarten through Fourth grade, teachers and principal included,
showed up to parade in a massive show of support for the
Mt. Sinai football team and Homecoming event!
MOUNT SINAI ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
Police Officer Class Visit
Junior Achievement
Mrs .Murphy and Mrs. Leiterman’s classes had the
pleasure of welcoming Officer Ken Bombace into their
classroom for a visit. The students listened to a real police radio and watched an informative Power Point presentation which included pictures of a police car, helicopter, station house and even a canine! Officer Ken came
dressed in his uniform. He told the classes all about his
important job. The students had an opportunity to ask
questions which they were eager to do. After the visit, the
classes wrote letters and drew pictures to let Officer Ken
know how much his visit was appreciated!
Junior Achievement is a partnering program between
second grade and high school students that covers a five
week curriculum about communities and businesses. Students in Mrs. Amato’s Parenting Class prepare half hour
lessons and presentations for their weekly visit to the Elementary School classes. Pictured below are students in
Mr. Iannacchino’s class.
T
Courtyard Pumpkins
he Friends of the Arts Second Annual Pumpkin Decorating Contest for Kindergarten students was another
overwhelming success with many creative designs to
judge. Additionally, Mr. and Mrs. DiMarco donated
enough pumpkins for each of the first grade classes to
pick one from a courtyard pumpkin patch. Some classes
used the pumpkins as a weighing and measuring activity,
while others opened them up to count and verify estimates of the number of seeds in their pumpkins.
T
Harvey Heilbrun, Storyteller
he second assembly of the 2009-2010 school
year was a storyteller named Harvey Heilbrun. He entertained students in all grades with Character Ed themed
stories and unusual musical instruments which included
the harmonica and spoons, to a wooden galloping horse
and the nasal harp!. Thanks again to the PTO for their
generous gift.
Mount Sinai Mirror 2
MOUNT SINAI ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
Coat Drive
T
he Student Council is sponsoring a winter coat
drive to benefit a local shelter for women and children.
Contributions of new and gently used coats have been
generous to say the least with over three hundred coats
filling the buckets. Donations were brought to the facility
in Shirley by a parent of an Elementary School student
who works there. They were extremely appreciative of
our efforts.
Board Game Club
Remember when children were entertained by board
games rather than video games or computers? In the Elementary School, students are returning to this lost activity
by joining the Board Game Club. Run by Mrs. Schlosser
and Mrs. Pflaumer, each week students are introduced
and play a different game. Some favorites up to this point
have been Yahtzee and Parcheesi. Others over the next
few meetings will include Monopoly, Scrabble, and Clueall Junior versions of the real ones.
Letters to Veterans
UNICEF
Elementary School UNICEF collection this past Halloween totaled $649.50. Many thanks to students who
helped this worthy cause that provides
aide to underprivileged third world
countries by helping out with basic
needs such as clothing and school
supplies. They are “Bucketfillers” for
the month of October.
S
tudent Council students wrote and sent letters to servicemen and
women in the United
States military to honor
them this past Veteran’s
Day. Letters were sent to
a former Mt. Sinai High
School graduate, Cory
O’Hara, who is serving in Japan in the Marines, and several relatives of students who are currently deployed in
Afghanistan and Iraq. Mrs. Shaljian’s first grade class
also interviewed several of our district personnel who
served in the military, Custodian Rich McKeigh, Grounds
Crewman John Andrews and Assistant Principal Elizabeth
Hine.
Mount Sinai Mirror 3
MOUNT SINAI ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
Mustang Postal
Jeopardy and Videoconference
econd grade students deliver mail in the Elementary
School on Mondays with the help of PTO volunteers in a
literacy pen pal program known as Mustang Postal. The
program during the school year runs from October
through March and affords students an opportunity to
write friendly letters to former teachers, students in other
classes, as well as support staff and building
principals. If an envelope is not addressed
with a complete address, it is stamped
“Return to Sender” and is not delivered until
corrections are made.
Mrs. Flynn, a fourth grade teacher, used the new projector that was installed in her and her colleague’s classrooms this summer to develop a Social Studies Jeopardylike review game. Students enjoyed the question and answer game and probably did not even realize how it
helped them study for the test. This is just another example of how technology makes learning fun.
S
Fire Prevention Poster Contest
Welcome Mr. Swift
Mr. Dean, the Elementary School music teacher and
Chorus director, retired after over thirty years of service to
the Mt. Sinai school district. His replacement, Nathan
Swift (pictured below) is quickly getting assimilated to the
Elementary School. Welcome!
T
he following students (pictured below) were selected
as winners for the Mt. Sinai Fire Dept. Fire Prevention Poster contest last month: Morgan Blasi, Jacob
Merlo, Kaylee VanMiddlen, Hayden Taylor, Ashley Cromer, Audrey Biello , Rachel Smolarsky, Evan Blasi, Michael Russo, Nicole Kepper, Ben Ryan and Nicholas
Carillo. Congratulations to all.
Mount Sinai Mirror 4
MOUNT SINAI ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
October Student Recognition
Derek Takacs, Grace D’Angio, Brianna and Evan Matias,
Leigh Harris, Robert Demeo, Meghan Scutaro, Konnor Walters.
Justyn Carerras
Jake Croston
MOUNT SINAI ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
November Student Recognition
Tim Spagnolo
Ashley Petrizzo
Ryan Harris, Jessica Schmitt, Timothy Spagnola,
Erin Mehl, Dylan Champagne, Danielle Cesario,
Jared Donnelly, Olivia Williams.
MOUNT SINAI MIDDLE SCHOOL
Grades 5 – 8
Mr. Robert Grable
Principal
T
Mr. Christopher Heil
Assistant Principal
Turkey Drive
he First Annual Mount Sinai Middle School Student Council Turkey Drive was a huge success,
raising over $400 for local families in need of assistance
for the Thanksgiving holiday.
In this friendly competition between grade levels, students bought paper feathers to decorate a turkey designated for their grade level. Student Council members,
grades five through eight, sold the feathers during their
lunch periods and “dressed” the turkeys to decorate the
cafeteria. Grade seven won the competition and was presented with the Turkey Trophy. However, the Turkey
Drive was truly a group effort, all four grades working together to help make Thanksgiving special for less fortunate families in Mount Sinai.
National Junior Honor Society Sports
T
he National Junior Honor
Society
organized
a
Sports Equipment Drive this
November collecting new and
gently used items such as
balls, bats, cleats, sneakers
and even rollerblades. All equipment will be inventoried
and shipped to the National Alliance for Youth Sports
where it will then be distributed to children around the
world who are unable to participate in sports due to a lack
of equipment.
The National Alliance for Youth Sports continuously
runs its Global Gear Drive Program, aiming to provide
sports related equipment to various impoverished regions
around the world. If you have any equipment that you
would like to donate, please visit their website at
http://www.nays.org/global_gear_drive/.
O
Daniel Giordano, Cassandra Wilson, Maria Pellarin, Casey
Wesolowski and Olivia Esposito accept the
“Turkey Trophy” on behalf of Grade 7.
National Junior Honor Society Ornament Sale
With plans of adopting a family this holiday season, the National Junior Honor Society set out to sell personalized holiday ornaments to raise funds. The handmade ornaments were red and black to promote Mount
Sinai pride and were personalized by members of the National Junior Honor Society.
The sale was conducted at the PTO Craft Fair, and approximately $300 was collected.
Ornaments will still be available for purchase during
lunch periods until mid-December. At that time, a family
will be chosen and holiday gifts will be purchased with the
proceeds.
PTO Craft Fair
n Saturday, November 21, the PTO held their
annual craft fair throughout the hallways of
Mount Sinai Middle School. Although many community
members are familiar with the event, they are not aware
of the planning, preparation and hard work dedicated to
making the day a success. Along with many PTO members and middle school teachers, student volunteers from
Student Council, National Junior Honor Society, Service
Club and Community Outreach Club devoted their Friday
afternoon to helping the PTO prepare the building with
signs, decorations and floor plans. Some students dedicated their Saturday morning to help vendors move their
merchandise from their vehicles to their designated tables
within the school,
while
others
helped clean up
and bring goods
out of the school
and back to their
cars.
Thank you, students, for all of
your hard work, as
this event would
not have run so
smoothly without
you!
Mount Sinai Mirror 7
MOUNT SINAI MIDDLE SCHOOL
Students of the Month
October 2009
Student
Subject
Rebecca Gomes
Kaitlyn Miller
Timothy Chebuske
Carissa Gulli
Victoria Harman
Julia Ruggieri
Abigail Allshouse
Justin Edwards
Dominique Harloff
Kaitlyn Loh
Zachary McFadden
Christopher Zoufaly
Grade 5
Grade 6
Spanish
Family and Consumer Sciences
English Language Arts
Physical Education
Social Studies
Music
Technology
Math
Science
Art
Citizens of the Month
October 2009
Student
Subject
Nicholas DeCresenzo
Alexandra Lindstrom
Jennifer Brajuha
Jordan Diamond
Erika Gillespie
Robert Pego
Leanne Rodriguez
Sofia Tufariello
Frank Bosio
Silvestro Crino Jr.
Lindsay Putkowski
Bryan Reed
Grade 5
Grade 6
Family and Consumer Sciences
Art
Music
Social Studies
English Language Arts
Spanish
Physical Education
Science
Math
Technology
November 2009
Student
Grade
Antonia Calamas Evan Mitchell Brittney Mojica John Pawluk Corissa Shaw Faris Furoogh Nicolas Gresser Kasandra Lozano Robert Campbell Olivia Cifuni Taylor Filosa Emily Goodman Rachel Costantino Jessica Wellhausen 5 5 5 5 5 6 6 6 7 7 7 7 8 8 (Citizens of the Month Continued on pg. 9)
Mount Sinai Mirror 8
MOUNT SINAI MIDDLE SCHOOL
Pink Hair for Hope
(Citizens of the Month Continued fm pg. 8)
O
November
n Wednesday, October 28, 2009, students at
Mount Sinai Middle School showed their support for Breast Cancer Awareness Month by participating
in Pink Hair for Hope. During this event, students had
pink hair extensions bonded to a small
piece of their own hair. This was a fun way
to show support for such a worthy cause.
Our school contributed a total $1,770,
which was donated to The National Breast
Cancer Foundation.
Student
Kristyn Mehl
Courtney Palma
Juliana Palmiotto
Korey Testa
Mariah Dick
Dimitri Lakios
William Brune
Leo Kremm
Amber Masullo
Valentina Naples
Nicholas Cavaliere
Jonathan Grego
Danielle Hertzovitz
Raquel Lobato
Hallie Moore
Justin Murphy
Beverly Schnall
Catherine Tawfik
Grade
5
5
5
5
6
6
7
7
7
7
8
8
8
8
8
8
8
8
Thanksgiving Food Drive
T
he Service Club and Community Outreach Club held
Mount Sinai Middle School’s Annual Thanksgiving
Food Drive from November 2 through November 12. All
classes participated in this year’s success.
This event offered our students an opportunity to involve themselves in a service activity that benefited the
less fortunate in our community. The collection was organized with over thirty club members participating. The
students displayed enthusiasm and compassion while
they anxiously filled seven large collection boxes with
food items amounting to approximately 1000 pounds!
The food was donated to the Long Island Cares Organization located in Bohemia, New York. These items were
then wrapped in gift baskets for local families.
Ink / Toner Recycle Drive
You may not give much thought to what happens to
your ink-encrusted old cartridges after the new ones
come out of the foil wrapper, but tossing them away
should be the last thing you consider. Just like paper,
plastic, glass and all the additional materials you load into
your recycling bin at home every week, there is a whole
other life for printer and toner cartridges other than the
landfill.
(Ink/Toner Drive Continued on pg. 10)
Mount Sinai Mirror 9
MOUNT SINAI MIDDLE SCHOOL
(Ink/Toner Drive Continued fm pg. 9)
In the efforts to “Go Green,” the Community Outreach
Club and Service Club members are holding an ink and
toner recycle drive. This began in early September and
runs through the end of June. Proceeds are being donated to a Mount Sinai resident who suffers from brain
trauma injury. Her family is in need of assistance to pay
for her medical care. The students will ship the old ink
and toner cartridges to approved re-manufacturing companies for re-use.
Please help support this event by dropping off your
used cartridges to the collection box located in Mount Sinai Middle School’s main office.
Middle School Readers
O
n November 19, 2009, Ms. Wolbert, the school library media specialist, and thirty-two seventh grade
students from the Family and Consumer Sciences class
made their annual visit to the Mount Sinai Elementary
School to read picture books to sixteen classes. This was
a culminating activity for the Child Care Unit where the
students spent time researching the developmental
stages of children and creating activities for the groups.
The middle school students who volunteered to read
were:
Lexi Avignone
Sarah Barbakoff
Tina Batinovic
Jason Bottiglieri
Sofia Braca
Tim Chebuske
Jessica DeMeo
Deanna Dempsey
Stephanie Dunham
Tabitha Eletto
Devon Gaynes
Peter Genco
Daniel Giordano
Victoria Harman
Katie Hogan
Dylan Kraebel
James Keenan
Arden LoRe
Jourdan Masullo
Ashley O’Connor
Lauren Poretsky
Molly Presser
Zaineb Qureshi
Sarah Raynock
Julia Ruggieri
Keegan Sabo
Michelle Scanlon
Ashley Seiter
Emily Spagnolo
Sam Sullivan
Hannah Sullivan
Samantha Thompson
The middle school readers thoroughly enjoyed themselves sharing their joy of reading with the elementary
school students.
T
Holiday Caroling
he Service Club and
Community
Outreach
Club have once again planned
their annual visit to the Long Island Veterans Nursing Facility in
Stony Brook on December 17, 2009. Their “holiday mission” is to fill the halls with smiles, laughter, and holiday
spirit. The club members have practiced after school for
months to put on a fabulous sing-a-long for the residents.
The residents are always eager to talk to the children
and tell them about their valuable war stories. The club
members listen attentively and learn the importance of
caring for others. It is a fun time for both students and
residents.
Kit Update
On December 3, Kit said goodbye to the many friends she has
made at Mount Sinai Middle School
and headed off to Puppy College at
the Guide Dog Foundation in Smithtown, where she will go through six
to twelve months of additional training before being
placed with a visually impaired person. As a Guide Dog,
Kit will change the life of this person, providing them with
safety and more independence.
(Kit Update Continued on pg. 11)
Mount Sinai Mirror 10
MOUNT SINAI MIDDLE SCHOOL
(Kit Update Continued fm. pg. 10)
Kit‘s college experience begins with a two-week bonding
period with her trainer. After getting acquainted with her
trainer, Kit will spend her days at various training sites: in
the city, at a local mall, in a local town, or at a train station. She will learn different skills at each of these sites.
For instance, in the city Kit will learn to pass an obstacle
far enough to the left so there is room for the person she
is guiding to also pass that obstacle. Additionally, Kit will
be taught how to find an empty seat on the subway. At
the mall, Kit will learn how to ride an elevator and escalator and how to go through revolving doors. She will also
sit quietly while her handler makes a purchase, and she
will learn to ignore strollers and little children.
Kit’s experience at the middle school has exposed her
to a variety of distractions: crowds, activities, smells, and
sounds. This exposure will help with her transition to
Puppy College. While she is being trained, Kit will be
evaluated by the trainers to determine if she will become
a good Guide Dog, or if she would be better suited as a
Vet Dog, helping an injured veteran. Whatever the result,
Kit has a wonderful journey ahead of her. We will miss
her very much and wish her the best of luck!
Good luck, Kit!
Dr. Dewey was once a part of the Brookhaven National
Laboratory’s research on addiction and has recently presented at Long Island high schools including Smithtown,
Sachem, Westhampton, and Southold. While many other
drug awareness programs preach a message of “Just Say
No,” Dr. Dewey informs his audience that his goal is to
provide them with medically researched factual information related to the effects that drug use has on the human
brain and body. As many parents, teachers and administrators agree, Dr. Dewey’s presentations are the most
informational and impactful presentations that they have
ever seen on the topic of drug use and addiction.
On November 18, 2009, Dr. Dewey returned to Mount
Sinai to share his research with our seventh, eighth, and
ninth grade students. As noted above, Dr. Dewey shared
factual medical information with our students and clearly
communicated the effects of drug use on the human
body. Dr. Dewey also shared several brain scans of drug
users, from caffeine to heroin, to illustrate the chemical
effects the use of legal and illegal drugs has on the brain.
While the effects of being a drug addict or alcoholic were
obvious, he explained and illustrated the effects of using
marijuana, cocaine or heroin
one time has on the brain.
PET and MRI brain scans of
one-time
users
clearly
showed a decrease in normal brain activity. Based on
students’ questions at the
conclusion of Dr. Dewey’s
presentation, this was certainly an eye-opening experience for most.
Dr. Dewey continues to
share his research with students and their respective
learning communities. His
message is clear and provides students and parents with information for making
constructive choices to preserve their health and wellbeing. Further, it should be noted that Dr. Dewey shares
his time and research voluntarily and we are thankful for
the time and information he shared with our students and
community.
Dr. Steven Dewey Visits Mount Sinai
R
ecently, Newsday and News12 have run a series of
stories on the rising use of heroin among teenagers on
Long Island. In a short time, the popularity of heroin has
exploded throughout Nassau and Suffolk Counties. In
response to this trend, it is important to educate our students, parents, and community on all aspects of this horrific drug.
Dr. Steven Dewey, of the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, visited the Mount Sinai community on October 22, 2009, to share his presentation entitled, “The Science of Addiction.”
R
LCD Monitors are Here!
ecently the middle school received two new 46" LCD
monitors as very generous donations by the Mount Sinai Parent
Teacher Organization and the
Mount Sinai Teachers’ Union. The
monitors are located outside the
main office and in the cafeteria.
Mount Sinai
Middle School
(LCD Monitors Continued on pg. 12)
Mount Sinai Mirror 11
MOUNT SINAI MIDDLE SCHOOL
(LCD Monitors Continued fm. pg. 11)
So far, the monitors are being utilized to post pictures and
small video clips of the middle school community. Pictures and/or videos are joined together with software that
enables motion and transitions to be applied to produce
mini slide shows. Events projected to date include the
following:
Homecoming 2009
Students and Citizens of the Month Awards
Bagel Breakfasts
Sporting Events
Students' Artwork
Students' Science Projects
2009 National Junior Honor Society Induction
2009 Boston Trip
and
The monitors are also being used to inform the community of upcoming events. The use of the technology is
new to the middle school and Mr. Grable and Mr. Heil
welcome suggestions and/or postings for the monitors.
Holiday Spirit Abounds at the Middle School
This holiday season, the Middle School Student Council, along with the National Junior Honor Society, conducted their annual Toys for Kids Drive. Beginning December 1, students, faculty and staff have donated toys,
hats, mittens and gloves in order to make the holiday season brighter for less fortunate children. All items collected
will be donated to Brookhaven Town INTERFACE Holiday
Toy Drive. The toy drive will continue through December
18.
Additionally, to dress up the Middle School for the holiday season, the Student Council purchased a new
“giving” tree. The students decorated it with Mount Sinai
colors and it is accessorized with a beautiful tree skirt
handcrafted by Ms. Corcoran, one of our Family and Consumer Sciences teachers. The tree stands outside the
main office, bringing a bit of the holiday cheer to all that
pass by. Thank you to Ms. Meehan, student advisor, and
Ms. Corcoran for their decorating efforts!
A
YÜ|xÇwá Éy à{x TÜàá
s fall draws to a close we’d like to thank everyone
who helped make it so successful. We really appreciate
the support in the many different ways it was given: attendance and participation at our general meeting by both
teachers and parents, purchasing coffee cakes and tshirts, volunteering at the craft fair and the Holiday Boutique and even sending in those Papa John’s pizza box
receipts. If you would still like to purchase a t-shirt or bag,
please look for us at upcoming concerts and events or go
to our website for a form you can download and return to
any of our three schools. Please keep sending in the
Papa John’s pizza box receipts as this fundraiser will continue all year. They are giving us $1 per receipt.
So far this year these fundraisers have enabled us to provide pumpkins and prizes for participation and for the winners for the Kindergarten Pumpkin Decorating Contest,
Michaels gift cards to the “Artist of the Month” and Sound
Beach Music gift cards to the “Musician of the Month”,
flowers for the Tri-M Honor Society Induction ceremony
and posters for the fall drama production. The elementary
students will be enjoying a performance of the Multicultural Holiday Show on December 15th that we were happy
to facilitate. We have many more events and donations
planned for this year and look forward to working together
with all of you. We’d also like to thank the staff at the
Middle School for hanging the new banner that arrived
shortly after Back to School Night. It was purchased with
funds from our “Raise the Curtain” variety show event. It
certainly adds to the atmosphere of the Middle School
Auditorium.
We have added a new event this year that takes the place
of the Art Auction. Hopefully you have heard about the
Dinner Theater Whodunit at the Meadow Club on February 5th at 7:30pm. It’s titled “Our Wicked Cool High
School Reunion” and it is an interactive comedy/murdermystery. It is sure to be a great time for spouses and
friends. The buzz on this is that it will be well attended so
don’t miss out; send in your order form soon. You can
print the flyer and ticket order form from our web page.
Simply follow the links from the district main page for
Community Organizations. If you would like to assist in
the preparations for this event or if you have any suggestions, please contact us at [email protected].
We are also planning to once again sell Candygrams for
Valentine’s Day. You will be able to send a special treat
with a personal message to your child for only $2. Students will also be able to send Candygrams to their
friends. Watch for a flyer with ordering details or check
our website for more information.
We’d like to wish everyone Happy Holidays and a Healthy
New Year from the Friends of the Arts. Mount Sinai Mirror 12
MOUNT SINAI HIGH SCHOOL
Grades 9 – 12
Mr. Matthew J. Dyroff
Assistant Principal
Mr. Edward Casswell
Principal
2009 Siemens Competition in
Math, Science and Technology Semifinalist
C
ongratulations to Senior Anjali Kapur for being selected as a Semifinalist in the 2009 Siemens Competition in Math, Science and Technology. A record number of projects competed this year with 318 students chosen as semifinalists of the 2151 students registered for
the competition. Anjali is one of 63 New York State students and the first Mount Sinai HS student to be selected
as a semifinalist in the history of the school. Her research
paper was entitled “Whole Cell Patch Clamp Analysis of
Human Cervical Carcinoma HeLa Cells Exposed to Gold
Nanoparticles.” Anjali performed her research after her
acceptance into the highly competitive Summer Scholar’s
program at the Garcia Center for Polymers at Engineered Interfaces at the Material Sciences Research
Center at SUNY-Stony Brook. The research entailed
how different sized gold nanoparticles (GNPs) affected
the electrical current into specific HeLa (cancer) cells and
has significant implications in GNP technology for its role
in biosensors, cancer diagnostics and other therapeutic
applications. As part of the Mount Sinai High School
STARS-STEPS programs, Anjali will be submitting her
project to other competitions throughout the year including the INTEL Science Talent Search.
Mr. Frank LaBianca
Assistant Principal
2010 New York State Academic Excellence
Scholarship Nominees
C
ongratulations to the following students who were
nominated to apply for the 2010 Scholarships for
Academic Excellence (SAE), which are based on a student’s Regents exam scores:
Pictured with Mr. Dyroff and Mr. Casswell are the Academic
Scholarship nominees - Samantha Capece, Erica Giordan,
James Grippe, Anjali Kapur, Moira Power, Erica Russo
and Amanda Stasiewicz
Mount Sinai Students Attend Compassion
Without Borders Leadership Conference
Anjali Kapur pictured with Mr. Dyroff, Mrs. Nau-Ritter,
Mr. Mattews and Mr. Casswell
On October 22nd, the following student ambassadors
traveled to Harborfields High School and participated in
the Suffolk County High School Principals Association
first annual Compassion Without Borders Leadership
Conference (Kenneth Gunasekera, Claire Kostic, Alexandra Kleeman, Amanda Stasiewicz, Sean Viscount,
Sabrina Spotorno, Mustafa Wahid, Mason Sofia, Russell Leibowitz, Erica Russo, Maria Michalos, Addie Mandelbaum). In addition to our Mount Sinai students, over
500 other high school student leaders from forty Suffolk
County High Schools joined together in support of Dylan
Thompson, a sophomore from Harborfields High
School. Dylan suffers from Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. DMD is a fatal progressive disorder that causes
loss of muscle function and independence.
(Mt. Sinai Students attend Conference Continued on pg. 14)
Mount Sinai Mirror 13
MOUNT SINAI HIGH SCHOOL
(Mt. Sinai Students attend Conference Continued fm. pg. 13)
In addition to the money raised, these student leaders
are forming the first ever Suffolk County Student Leadership Council and will continue to participate in joint
community service initiatives. If you are interested in
obtaining more information about Dylan Thompson or
DMD and/or would be interested in donating, log on to
http://www.dylansfootprint.org or contact the high school
Main Office for more information.
STUDENT OF THE MONTH
Mount Sinai High School would like to recognize the following students who received Student of the Month certificates for the month of October:
Student
Subject
Grade
Amanda Stasiewicz
Citizenship
12
Christina Sancho
Physical Education
10
Claire Kostic
Music
11
Jake Foley
Social Studies
10
Jamie Corbett
English
10
Justine Scharrer
Technology
12
Kenneth Gunasekera
Science
11
Mattea Cai
Art
9
Matthew Esposito
Math
11
Melissa Chebuske
Family & Consumer Science 12
Michael Faughnan
Computers
9
Mustafa Wahid
Health
11
Patrick Beltrani
Business
11
Robert Kluger
Foreign Language
9
MSHS hosts its 1st International Ocean Beach
T
he National Grid sponsored the Lei Kuleana Club
at Mount Sinai High School in its 1st hosting of
the International Beach Clean Up at Cedar Beach. Over
65 students from the High School participated in this
year’s Cedar Beach Clean Up on Monday, October 26th,
after several weather delays. It was the 1st year for the
Lei Kuleana Club to host the event, so several community
groups from Westchester, Nassau and Suffolk Counties
contacted Mrs. Nau-Ritter concerning the date as posted
on the American Littoral Society (ALS) website. The annual event where students earn up to three hours of community service is sponsored by the ALS as part of the International Coastal Cleanup (ICC). The ICC includes
more than 400,000 volunteers from 75 countries and collects more than a ton of debris from our local Long Island
Shores. Our MSHS collection this year included nearly 50
bags of garbage with 5746 items, including 1,072 bottle
caps and 1,848 cigarette butts. All collated data was then
sent to the ICC for the international publication of the
2010 beach cleanup. Our students are commended for
their efforts and appreciated the sponsorship of the National Grid, as they wore their t-shirts on that day (see
photos).
MOUNT SINAI HIGH SCHOOL MUSIC & ART
Mr. Stephen Mantone, Music & Applied Arts Director
Music Honor Society Holds Induction
T
he Mt. Sinai High School Chapter of the Tri-M
Music Honor Society held its annual induction
ceremony on Saturday, November 7 in the High School
Auditorium. Featured at the ceremony were presentations by this year’s officers: David Schwartz, President;
Alexandria McGowan, Vice President; Moira Power, Secretary; Jessica O’Hara, Treasurer; Erica Giordano and
Sarah Sullivan, Historians. Students from Band, Chorus
and Orchestra presented performances.
The new inductees are Lianne Budd, Edward Compagnone, Caroline D’Angelo, Brandon Deniz, Aylin Erdogan, Max Kanowitz, Claire Kostic, Samantha Loh,
Megan McCaffrey, Emily Ong, Michaela Pawluk, Nicole
Petrosini, Marie Pierce and Paul Segal.
Mount Sinai String Students in Spotlight
Sixteen students from the
Mount Sinai School District
have been selected to participate in the Long Island String
Festival Association’s annual
All-County Festival to be held
on January 15-17 for grades 812 and January 29-31 for grades 5-7. The students were
selected through a highly competitive process based on
last year’s NYSSMA Solo Festival scores and teacher
recommendations. Selected from grades 8-12 were
Gillian Dana, Ethan Donowitz, Erika Mani, Alexandria
McGowan, Emily Ong and Jenna Van Middelem. Selected from grades 5-7 are Sarah Barbakoff, Lucas Capobianco-Hogan, Constance Cash, Cristina Gulli, Caroline
Hoeg, Emily Mantone, Nikita Narsingh, Janna Poretsky,
Emily Robinson and Savanna Russiello-Tous.
Mt. Sinai Music Students Perform at
All-Country Festival
Sixty-six students from the Mount Sinai Middle School
and High School were selected to perform in this year’s
Division I (grades 5/6, Division II (grades 7/8) and Division
III (grades 9/10) All County Festivals March 13 and 14.
Students were selected on a competitive basis using
last year’s NYSSMA scores and teacher recommendations. The All County Festival is sponsored by the Suffolk
County Music Educator’s Association.
Division I (grs. 5/6)
Band: Samantha Croston, Gabriela Custodio, Hallie Devlin,
Alexander Giannantonio, Ryan Hecht,
Brian McKeown, Daniel O’Mara, Nicole Ravel, Andrew Rodriguez, Christopher Schiavetta, Meghan Walker, Shane Walker
Chorus: Courtney Ellis Brune, Corinne Cianciulli, Olivia Hiz,
Cara Navaretta, Emily Whelan,
Jessica Woo
Orchestra: Hannah Austen, Samantha Beiter, Jacob Bezner,
Meghan Brajevich, Mikayla Burger, Madison Burridge, Spero
Calamas, Lucas Capobianco-Hogan, Ross DiBetta, Dylan Gins,
Amanda Loh, Rebecca Lynch, Emily Mantone, Delaney Mulligan, Nikita Narsingh, Evan Nilsson, Megan Reilly, Samuel
Ritter, Emily Robinson, Emily Shaljian, Michael Shen, Vanessa
Wellhausen
Division II (grs. 7/8)
Band: Rachel Menna, Bryan Reed
Chorus: Peter Riley Brune, Stephanie Dunham, Aaron Miller,
Shayna Pirreca
Orchestra: Eric Compagnone, Kyle Cullin, Erika Mani
Division III (grs. 9/10)
Band: Aaron Codding, William Dwyer, Mark Elsesser, Melissa
Gartner, Camille Jwo, Mason Sofia
Chorus: Thomas Bundy, Jenna Ghidaleson, Robert Kluger,
John Scalamandre, Andrew Silberfeld, Sean Viscount, Dylan
Whelan
Orchestra: Caroline Custodio, Gillian Dana, Ethan Donowitz,
Jenna Van Middelem
“LES MISÉRABLES”
Comes to Mount Sinai High School
T
he Mount Sinai High School Music Department will
be presenting “Les Misérables” on March 4, 5 & 6, 2010
at 7:30 P.M. in the high school auditorium, North Country
Road, Mt. Sinai. Tickets are $15.00 for adults and $7.00
for students and senior citizens (senior citizens may reserve free tickets for the Thursday evening performance). For information or to reserve tickets, call 8702882.
Mount Sinai Mirror 15
MOUNT SINAI HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETICS
Mr. Scott Reh, Athletic Director
Scholar/Athlete Fall Team Awards
The New York State High School Athletic Association has recognized Mt. Sinai High School varsity athletic
teams for achieving academic excellence while actively participating in varsity level interscholastic athletics
during the 2009-2010 fall season.
Boys Soccer
90.122
Girls Soccer
90.338
Girls Volleyball
90.582
Football
90.378
Boys Golf
90.656
Girls Tennis
91.427
Girls Cross Country
96.424
Boys Cross Country
95.750
Congratulations to the Girls Volleyball team and Coach Andy Matthews for making it to the County finals for the
third year.
Congratulations to the Varsity Girls Soccer team and Coach Drumm on an undefeated season, winning League
6 and qualifying for the semi-finals of the Suffolk County Championship. It was the best finish in schools history.
Congratulations to the Varsity Girls Cross Country team for winning their Division and the Suffolk County
Championship. The following student/athletes qualified to compete in the New York State Public High School
Championships: Brittany Callahan, Amanda Clark, Julia Dooley, Kayleigh Olive, Stephanie Sheehan, Amanda
Stasiewicz, & Janie Turek the girls finished 9th in New York State. Congratulations to Coach Dwyer for being
named Coach of the Year for the League, Division and the County for Cross Country.
Congratulations to the Varsity, JV & Junior High Cheerleaders along with Varsity Coach Nicole Roggemann, JV
Cheerleading Coaches Michelle Roggemann & Christine Sturges, & Junior High Coaches Kara Bochiccio &
Amanda Roubal the Mt. Sinai Booster Club and all the parent volunteers who helped host our third Rookie competition on December 6th and made it a huge success. The Varsity Cheerleaders qualified for the 3rd year to
compete in the Nationals in Orlando, Florida this February.
Visit www.mtsinai.k12.ny.us ; go into high school and or middle school and click on AthPLEASE NOTE:
letics: For current Athletic Schedules, directions, forms and other information.
VERY IMPORTANT: On the Athletic Website are links and updated information (as shown below) regarding the
College Bound Student Athlete
 Keeping track of core courses required by the NCAA is the parent and student’s responsibility. Please refer
to the quick reference sheet when choosing your son/daughters courses they plan to take each year. * Please
note High School credits taken in Middle School will not satisfy core course requirements.
Students must apply to the NCAA Clearinghouse the summer after their junior year. They can do this by going
online to www.ncaaclearinghouse.com. Authorization for release of records must be submitted to guidance
upon applying to the clearinghouse.
It is the student’s responsibility to send their SAT scores through www.collegeboard.com. The CEEB code is
9999.
For further information, worksheets, requirements etc. please go online to www.ncaastudent.org
Mount Sinai Mirror 16
MOUNT SINAI HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETICS
Mr. Scott Reh, Athletic Director
Booster Club Blog
C
ongratulations to all of our Fall Varsity and Jr. Varsity Teams!
The Annual Wrestling Tournament is on January 2. This all-day tournament is exciting, with lots of good food to eat.
Please come to cheer for our athletes.
SAVE THIS DATE: Night at the Races is scheduled for January 22.
SUPER RAFFLE TICKETS FOR A 2010 Jeep Grand Cherokee are now on sale for $50.00 each. The drawing will be
held at the Annual Golf outing on June 26, 2010. Get one fast! There are only 2000 tickets!
The Booster Club would like to wish you all a very Happy Holiday Season and a healthy and happy New Year.
Mount Sinai Mirror 17
A
s winter sets in upon us, our fall fundraisers have finished
with moderate success.
Ladies Night Out took place on November 10 at East Wind and
was attended by 363 ladies. Raffle prizes donated by area businesses and members of our community made this night a success.
Please remember to shop at these businesses in support of them
supporting us. We congratulate the group of ladies who put together
this enjoyable and successful night.
Our Annual Craft Fair was held on Nov. 21 with over 115 vendors
and school based organizations participating in this event. Volunteers
in this year’s event were the strongest it has ever been and we would
like to thank all that participated. Students took this opportunity to
raise money for their class funds or clubs with enthusiasm. Customers shopped for beautiful handmade gifts for the holidays or perhaps
themselves. Santa came to visit in our school auditorium were children could take a picture with him for a family keepsake.
The Book Fair will be held February 1, 2, & 3 in the Elementary
and Middle School.
Students will have a chance to spend time browsing through age appropriate books along with their classmates and make choices that
interested them. One evening that week families will have the opportunity to select books together.
Our next General Meeting is on January 8 at 10:00 am in the District Office. These meetings give everyone a chance to see what the
P.T.O. is doing, how you can help, and provide members a chance to
give their input or suggestions. Our next General Meeting is March
23. This is our nominations meeting were anyone who is a 2009/10
paid member can be nominated for a position on the board. Anyone
interested in becoming a board member can speak to Ellie Marino at
the January meeting.
Our PTO website is up and running. Please visit our site mtsinaipto.com to see what is happening in the PTO, print out our flyers
and any other information that pertains to the PTO. Continue to
check your calendar for P.T.O. events and look for our fliers. You can
email us at [email protected] or through our web site.
We want to thank you for your support in our fundraising events
and we wish everyone a happy and safe holiday.