Happy Holidays to the entire PWAY community! WE salute you for the positive impact that you have had on our students and our school. PHS, as a community institution of excellence, never forgets those who are less fortunate than ourselves. Our young people have donated canned goods to food banks, participated in toy drives for tots, volunteered at shelters and provided many services during this time of giving. We are PROUD of these young people and the teachers that guide them into being conscientious and productive members of this GREAT community.

As we enter 2020, it is with GREAT vision that we continue to strive and improve our condition as well as our capacity to develop into better citizens of the world. Here at PHS we will continue the rich tradition of staying on the path of the CHIEF and doing the critical things that make our school a GREAT place to LEARN and GROW.

We have much to share and much to offer. Again, Happy Holidays and welcome to a new year where we work to keep our standards HIGH and we expect everyone to RISE UP and meet these expectations. Read on to find out the latest happenings at PHS. Be Well!

Strength & Honor

Mr. Lester

Every month, thousands of schools across the US and Canada compete in the Vocabulary Bowl. We're excited to announce that Piscataway Township High School earned the following achievements.

• New Jersey State Champions for December 2019
• New Jersey State Top 10 School in December 2019

Congratulations PHS!!

Click on the link to watch our December Vocabulary Bowl Roundup Video.

On Friday, December 6th, 11 students competed in the Poetry Out Loud competition. Sophomore Karishma Kesapragada earned the top spot and will represent Piscataway at Regionals in February. The 2019 Competitors are listed below.

• L'nya Thomas
• Makya Lucky
• Natalya Welcome
• Kaylee Wright
• Emily Jiang
• Karishma Kesapragada (Gold Winner)
• Asiya Kamara
• Sanu Kamar
• Ashley Igbokwe (Bronze Winner)
• Zahraa Shaikh
• Naivrul Lathia (Silver Winner)

Mr. Giacomarra's engineering students participated in the Hydrogen Fuel Cell vehicle Challenge on Wednesday, December 11th, 2019 at New Providence High School sponsored by TransOptions, Inc. of Morris County. They competed against over 30 teams represented by 10 area high schools.

Team members Joanna Tan, Kanika Syal, and Sonali and Sarika Jepal earned 2nd place for speed performance and 3rd place engineering journal.

The Law Academy Speakers Series held its third talk since September with Dr. William Baskerville, the Assistant Superintendent and David Rubin, Esq. to speak to our Law and Justice Academy students. Dr. Baskerville spoke of his experiences as a student who grew up in the Civil Rights Era. Dr. Baskerville’s stories encouraged our students to be voices for justice. David Rubin shared his stories of growing up in a family of lawyers in New Brunswick and the road that led him to his current position as the attorney for the Piscataway School District.

Mrs. Rauch and Mrs. Cruz-Walsh continue to provide opportunities for our students to apply

their classroom learning through real world exposure.

We would like to THANK ALL of the STUDENTS and PARENTS that participated in OUR Middle States Survey. Your input is deeply valued and appreciated. I am PLEASED to announce that WE have MET all of the standards based upon your responses in both surveys.

However, WE recognize there is room for improvement. In the upcoming weeks, the Middle States Team will update ALL of OUR Stakeholders as to how WE will collectively address those areas in which WE need to work on. Again, I cannot thank you enough for those that participated and provided valuable feedback to improve Piscataway High School.

A very special thank you to all the staff and students who participated this year. You truly showed your holiday spirit!

The results are as follows:

• Honorable Mention: Ms. Memoli for most artistic
• Honorable Mention: Ms. Masmela and Ms. Zic for best winter scene
• 3rd Place: Ms. Dionisio, Batman Christmas for most environmentally friendly
• 2nd Place: Ms. Evy, The Polar Express for best replicated scene
• 1st Place: Mr. Schenkler, “Merry Physics” for best executed and most detail oriented. This work of art was created by just ONE student, Taylor Cicero. Great job, Taylor!

Click on the link below to see our 2019 PHS Beautiful Holiday Doors.

We celebrated Winter Spirit Week on Monday, December 16th - Friday, December 20th. Please see below for the spirit week lineup.

M O N D A Y 12/16 : Comfy Clothes Day

Start off the week with some cozy sweats!

T U E S D A Y 12/17: Twin Day

Wear the same outfit with a PHS peer!

W E D N E S D A Y 12/18: Meme Day

Dress up as Vsco girl, E-boy, or anything that represents the funny side of Gen Z!

T H U R S D A Y 12/19: Throwback Thursday Wear an outfit that represents your favorite decade!

F R I D A Y 12/20: Ugly Sweater Day

Happy Holidays! Wear an ugly sweater or other apparel to show off your holiday spirit!

The totals for Winter Spirit Week our listed below. Congratulations and thank you to all that participated.

First Place: Freshman with 252 points

Second Place: Seniors with 172 points

Third Place: Sophomores with 168 points

Fourth Place: Juniors with 152 points

Congratulations to Senior Annie Wang and Freshman Huyan Nguyen who auditioned for the Central Jersey Region Band.

Huyan placed 5th out of 180 violinists

Annie placed 1st out of 105 clarinetists

Congratulations, Srihari Yamunan for being selected this year to attend Nobel Week 2019 in Stockholm University in Sweden. He attended this prestigious event December 5th through December 10th, 2019. If you would like to know more about this event, please feel free to visit online at www.nshss.org/events.

January 2 Welcome Back

January 8 Piscataway High School Experience 6:00pm -PAC

January 14 Teacher In-Service - Early Dismissal for Students

January 15 Piscataway High School Experience (Inclement Weather Date) 6:00pm-PAC

January 20 School Closed - Martin Luther King, Jr.

Proud Sponsors

Of

Piscataway High School

Chiefs Nation Membership

Cedar Grove Café & Catering

Cullen Family Foundation

Inglesino, Webster, Wyciskala, & Taylor, LLC.

Gabriele’s Bar & Grill

DJSC Inc.

Piscataway Municipal Alliance

Tribe Members

Tequila & Tacos

Bellamy & Sons

Neshanic Valley Golf Course

Pete Falco’s

9 Round 30 Min Kickbox Fitness

Robert Williams Esq.

Ricochet Club

Black & Gold Members

Piscataway Soccer Club

Lester Taylor Esq.

Hand & Stone Massage

Piscataway Pizza

Stelton Lumber

Paul Schoeb

Rita’s

Wine Chateau

George Thomas Jr.

Thai Basil

Petrucci’s