These days are sure flying by and the Fine Arts Department has been keeping busy! From art shows, to Scholastics, to dance performances, to drumline, to the high school musical, to winter guard, we've kept going. It's so amazing that we have such a variety of curricular and co-curricular programs to offer our wildcats!
As we come upon February break, I hope that everyone is able to rest and relax (in whatever ways are meaningful for you!) and we look forward to seeing everyone after the break!
Keep track of our events and join us throughout the year - our amazing wildcats are sure to impress you!
~Sarah Gentile
Conceived and started by Westhill Band Director, Erin Althen and our very own, Greg Borsz, this ensemble aims to provide "an inspiring musical home to the most exceptional high school woodwind, brass, and percussion student-musicians from across Central New York" (from https://syracuseyouthwindsymphony.org). Interested students audition in October and began weekly rehearsals in November. This is the second year of this ensemble's existence.
There were eleven WGHS musicians selected to play in this special ensemble. They are:
- Samantha Bullock - Clarinet
- Riley Bullock - Trombone
- Sarai Card - Clarinet
- Harrison Card - Trumpet
- Jack Ciesielski - Tuba
- Reis Cleland - Timpani
- Audrey Diddle - Percussion
- Jack Dotzler - Tuba
- Georgia Dziedzic - Horn
- Benjamin Korzeniewski - Saxophone
- Layla MacArthur - Horn
- Evan Perkins - Tuba
- Ryan Popp - Horn
The musicians will be performing March 9 at the New York State Band Director's Association (NYSBDA) Symposium. Clear here to read information about the group: https://syracuseyouthwindsymphony.org/#about.
Thank you to all our West Genesee and Camillus community members that came out to support the WGHS production of Disney's The Little Mermaid this past weekend! Even with a snow day and a rescheduled performance, you made sure our student performers had great audiences for every single show. We hope you enjoyed it as well and can't wait to see you for another one next year!!
1. Arts and music education programs are MANDATORY in countries that rank consistently among the highest for math and science test scores, like Japan, Hungary, and the Netherlands ["Lessons from PISA for the United States, Strong Performers and Successful Reformers in Education", OECD Publishing].
2. Students who study art are 4 times more likely to be recognized for academic achievement and 3 times more likely to be awarded for school attendance [National Endowment for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Institute of Museum and Library Services, "ReInvesting in Arts Education: Winning America's Future through Creative Schools." The President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities].
3. Researchers find that sustained learning in music and theater correlates strongly with higher achievement in both math and reading [Americans for the Arts. "Summary of Key Additional Arts Education Research and Facts."]
-from www.DoSomething.org
