April has been a very eventful month and the EMPIRE has shined throughout the first month of spring. Our courtyard Cherry Blossoms were out in full bloom for a few days. That is always a great sign that better weather is ahead. Unfortunately, the weather was shaky at best outside but BRIGHT and SUNNY on the inside of PHS. We got off to a tremendous start with PARCC testing under the direction of Mrs. Edmondson and her merry band of helpers that make it happen. I hope you listened to WBLS 107.5 to the Steve Harvey morning show on April 25 as Dr. Bob Lee congratulated Mr. Calvo on being the winner of the Inspiring Teacher Award through NJEA. That could not have happened without the pen to paper efforts of Jessica Latkovich who wrote an amazing story about Mr. Calvo.

A tremendous month for our music and art students & teachers for being listed as a Best Community for Music Education by the NAMM Foundation as well as winning 1st, 2nd, and 3rd in the Congressman Frank Pallone Jr.’s annual art competition. That is the 3rd time in four years WE have won 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place. The EMPIRE is STRONG and growing every day. Please read on to hear about the GREAT things taking place at PHS…

Strength & Honor

PHS student, Avia Hurley, was awarded an Art Educators of New Jersey (AENJ) scholarship! Avia submitted a portfolio of work and an application and was selected to be honored at a reception in Trenton on May 22nd. By receiving this scholarship, Avia will be honored at the NJ Governor’s Awards in Art Education ceremony. This is a tremendous honor for Avia, her teacher Dorothy Amme, and for Piscataway High School. Congratulations on this amazing accomplishment!

On Saturday, March 17, 8th grade students had an opportunity to audition for the Visual Arts and Performing Arts Academy programs being offered at Piscataway High School beginning in the 2018-2019 school year. The academy program offers a focused course sequence with opportunities for students to build community, gain individualized support, and have exposure to mentorship and college application/audition support. Students auditioned for various concentrations (Visual Arts, Animation, Instrumental Music, Dance, Theater, and Vocal Music) based on a set of audition requirements. Accepted students were notified by letter on March 29th! Upperclassmen that have taken the appropriate course sequence and hold a 90 average in their academy coursework had an opportunity to apply as well. PHS will also offer Engineering and Biomedical Academy programs beginning next school year.

On Monday, March 19th, the PHS choirs were visited by Dr. Brandon Williams, a choral music education professor from Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University. Dr. Williams conducts the Voorhees Choir at Mason Gross and recently conducted the Region II Honors Choir this past fall. Dr. Williams worked with the choirs on their spring repertoire as they prepare for Disney and their spring performances. It was a fantastic experience for the choir and a

great opportunity to see the kind of opportunities available at Mason Gross.

On Saturday, March 10, the Piscataway High School Orchestra participated in an orchestra camp in preparation for their upcoming performances, including performing at Disney World on Friday, April 13, 2018. The students had the opportunity to work with professional musicians from around the state. The instructors play with such groups as the Riverside Symphonia, Pennsylvania Ballet, New Jersey Symphony, as well as many others. During the five hour camp, the students worked on the music they are preparing including “Sabre Dance,” “Sandpaper Ballet,” and “Overture to West Side Story." It was a very productive and enjoyable day.

PHS presented their musical, Damn Yankees, on March 1-3, 2018. The cast featured

Jade Scharnikow as Meg Boyd, Marques Stewart as Joe Hardy, Michael Dickinson as Applegate, and Juliet Pastras as Lola. The remainig cast featured students in grades 9-12 and an orchestra featuring many of our own Piscataway students. The production was fantastic with lots of high energy dance numbers, beautiful singing, and outstanding acting performances. Congratulations to everyone involved on a great production! The show was directed by Mr. Hall, vocal direction by Ms. Suozzo, choreography by Ms. Taylor, music direction by Dr. Sumner, stage management by Ms. Sudfield, produced by Mr. Viola, technical coordination by Ms. Hall, and set construction by Mr. Nickles.

Under the leadership of the dance, choir, and theater teachers at PHS, students presented a Broadway Cabaret on Friday, March 23rd. The performance was a huge success and featured outstanding performances of Broadway songs by PHS students. Proceeds benefited the PHS Choir program. It was clear to see how much talent PHS has as the students danced, sang, acted and collaborated! Students worked to take the lead in their performances and preparation! Congratulations to all!

The Piscataway High School Music program was in Disney World April 10th-15th! While enjoying the warm weather and Disney World attractions, students in the performing ensembles had the opportunity to participate in workshops lead by professional Disney performing artist and clinicians as well as give a performance at Disney Springs! As they toured Disney, they shared our Piscataway Pride with others.

Piscataway Township School District has been listed as a Best Community for Music Education by the NAMM Foundation! This accomplishment is due to our continued commitment to music education and the opportunities that our teachers provide for students and the community each day, in and out of your classrooms. Click the link below for more information.

Joanne Plaras (far right), at the Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) State Executive Board meeting, which was held on April 20th at Rutgers Business School. Joanne, a PHS junior, was recently elected Vice President of the North-Central region, which is one of four statewide. NJ FBLA has nearly 8,000 of over 230,000 worldwide members. For more information about PHS FBLA, please visit pwayfbla.weebly.com.

High School Heroes is a program Junior Achievement offers where High School students teach financial literacy to K-8 students. The training and materials are provided by JA so it's pretty much no cost to participating districts; however, the materials are rather expensive, so corporate donations pay for Junior Achievement staff, materials, and more.

Last year, we piloted High School Heroes at Martin Luther King School. This past fall, we visited MLK again, and this spring we visited Arbor School. Next year we hope to expand to at least two additional schools.

This is tremendous for Pway students as only a few select schools STATEWIDE are invited to attend. One of our PHS students added over 20 LinkedIn connections over the course of the evening. Adam's involvement with Junior Achievement over the years landed him a paid internship this past school year. Congratulations Adam!!

Junior Achievement congratulates its Class of 2018 Laureates and the Student Ambassadors who empowered themselves as leaders and inspired our guests on April 19th!

Mr. Calvo received an award from WBLS and NJEA for the Most Inspiring Teacher. Jessica Latkovich entered a contest "Say It with Your Pen" and wrote about how Mr. Calvo comes to school every day and encourages and inspires the students of PHS; while he was dealing with his daughter Faith's fight with cancer. Mr. Calvo was presented with the award and Jessica received two tickets to Summer Jam 2018. Congratulations Mr. Calvo!

On Wednesday, April 11, three student/athletes signed college admission commitments, meaning their academic and athletic performance earned them a scholarship to an institution of higher learning. Below is the list of student/athletes and the college they will attend in the fall. A huge thank you to everyone involved in helping our students achieve this recognition.

Larry McCullum – Manhattan College - Track

Matthew Peterson – Utica – Football

Yamirah Bennett Bernabela – Washington Adventist University – Basketball

Congratulations and Best Wishes!

Dr. Mrotek, Ms. Sercan and Ms. Elmahalawy’s chemistry students designed and built rockets that used vinegar and baking soda as fuel to achieve the maximum height possible. Students used their knowledge of chemical reactions and stoichiometric ratios to calculate the ideal baking soda and vinegar amounts needed. Students used their creativity to design a structure they believed would give them the maximum possible height.

Environmental Science students created an artistic representation of wetlands by creating a dodecahedron. Each side of the dodecahedron includes an important attribute of wetlands including images of types of wetlands, the functions of wetlands, as well as how humans impact wetlands.

This year's Annual PHS 5K Run/Walk was held on Sunday, April 29th. The 5K is a community fundraising event that raises funds for Project Graduation. This year's proceeds will benefit the class of 2018. The event hosted over 500 runners/walkers. The winner this year is Piscataway High School's sophmore, Jake Sisk with a race time of 18:38.1. A Special thanks to Sean Horan the Coordinator of the PWAY 5K and to the PWAY 5K Student Committee for their leadership, decisiveness, and professionalism.

Friday, April 27, was a Day of Silence, a national day of action in which students across the country vowed to take a form of silence to call attention to the silencing effect of anti-LGBTQ+ bullying and harassment in schools. https://www.cdc.gov/lgbthealth/youth.htm

May 7 PTSO Meeting 7:00 pm in Commons

May 11 Dance Concert 7:00-9:00 pm in PAC

May 12 Dance Concert 7:00-9:00 pm in PAC

May 16 PHS Spring Choir Concert 7:00-9:00 pm in PAC

May 18 PHS Art Show 6:00-9:00 pm in Media Center

Nay 22 Interim reports available in Genesis 12:00 (Noon)

May 22 PHS Spring Orchestra Concert 7:00-9:30 pm in PAC

May 23 PHS 50 Strong Dinner 6:00-8:30 pm

May 24 PHS Spring Band Concert 7:00-9:00 pm in PAC

May 28 Memorial Day - School Closed

May 30 PHS NHS Induction Ceremony 6:00-8:00 pm in PAC

May 31 Teacher In-Service Early Dismissal for Students

May 31 PHS Prom at the Grand Marquis in Old Bridge 6:00-11:00 pm