Region In Review

Congratulations to the Shepaug Valley School Class of 2024 on your Graduation! Region 12 is thrilled to celebrate this milestone achievement with you. Your hard work and dedication have paid off, and we're excited to see where your journey takes you next. Here's to a bright future filled with endless possibilities!

Congratulations to our talented 5th graders for putting on an enchanting performance of "The Wizards of Toogleville"! Huge thanks to our amazing teachers for their support and guidance in making this magical production possible!

The Shepaug Valley High School Spartan spring athletic teams enjoyed a very successful spring 2024 campaign.

The Spartan softball team finished the regular season with a 17-2 record, and they captured their second consecutive Berkshire League Championship in 2024. The team drew a first-round CIAC tournament bye, and beat East Catholic in the second round, before falling to Old Lyme in the quarterfinals in a 2-1 heartbreaker. Spartans Amelia Jacob, Rachel Hofmann, and Clare Moore were voted as First-Team Berkshire League All-Stars, and Amelia Jacob was also honored with a First-Team All-State selection.

The baseball team finished the regular season with a 15-5 record, and won the Berkshire League championship (co-champions with Northwestern Regional). The Spartans won their first round CIAC tournament game against Granby before falling in the second round to Wheeler. Griffin Blum, Rocco Smith, and Sam Granata all were selected as First-Team Berkshire League All-Stars, and Griffin Blum also was selected as First-Team All-State.

The boys tennis team captured the Berkshire League championship (co-champions with Nonnewaug) with a 13-1 overall record. The Spartans won their first round CIAC tournament match against Housatonic before losing in the quarterfinals to league rival Nonnewaug. John Wild, Kip Faison, Ben Churyk, Alex Ostrosky, and Luca Inglese all earned Berkshire League All-Star status at the league tournament.

The girls tennis team had a successful season, and finished fourth in the Berkshire League. Drawing an away match at Coventry in the first round of the CIAC tournament, the Spartans lost a close match to the Patriots. Juliet Eddy won the Berkshire League singles championship at the league tournament, and also earned Berkshire League All-Star status.

The track & field teams had a successful season, placing six of its members on the Berkshire League All-Star team. Girls team member Christianne Persson achieved this accomplishment, as did Gavin Abdella, Drew Konik, Dan Millen, Nate Steinis, and Reed Woerner from the Boys team. At one of the closest and most exciting finishes ever at the Berkshire League championship meet, the Shepaug boys team finished 0.5 points ahead of the Nonnewaug Chiefs, which earned the Spartans their first Berkshire League championship since 2006.

Below are the start dates for Fall High School Sports:

Football (Northwest United Co-op - run at Nonnewaug High School):

August 15 - 17 - Organized Team Activities

August 19 - Conditioning Week

August 24 - First Contact Practice

Golf:

August 12

Soccer, Cross Country, and Field Hockey:

August 19

Anyone with questions should contact Athletic Director Matt Perachi at perachim@region-12.org.

Students from Booth Free School, Washington Primary School, and Burnham School in Region 12 had a fantastic time at their annual Field Day, enjoying a range of activities under the sunny skies. Everyone participated in classic games such as potato sack races, Duck Duck Splash, and tug-of-war.

The event was a fun break from the usual school routine and gave the students a chance to work on their team building skills. A special thanks to the teachers and parent volunteers who ensured the day ran smoothly. Field Day is an exciting, fun day at school that brings students together and fosters unity while creating lasting memories.

Mrs. Wescott’s preschool class has been exploring the states of matter. Our new vocabulary includes liquid, solid and gas. Our first experiment was to turn a liquid, fruit juice, into a solid, popsicle, by freezing it. Then we observed how a popsicle returned to a liquid when we left it out on the table. It took about two hours for it to completely melt.

Next, we set out to create a gas by combining a liquid and a solid. Students filled balloons with baking soda. The balloons were attached to plastic bottles containing vinegar. When the two elements mixed, a gas formed and inflated the balloon!

Our next science challenge will be to create fireworks in a jar!

Two bright minds from Washington Primary School (WPS) have progressed to the esteemed State Finals of the Invention Convention, hosted today at UCONN Gampel Pavilion. Logan, a fourth-grader, and Carlyn Tuozzoli, a fifth-grader, have emerged as standouts among the 12,000 statewide participants, securing their places among the 350 finalists. Their journey commenced with a notable performance in the Semi-Finals, where they impressed with their innovative concepts and problem-solving abilities.

In addition to their commendable advancement to the State Finals, Logan received recognition yesterday with the esteemed ESPN Inventor Athlete Award, acknowledging his exceptional blend of creativity and athleticism. Congratulations to Logan and Carlyn for their remarkable achievements!

This spring, the Art Club and student volunteers created the first Shepaug Remembers: A Poppy Project for Memorial Day to commemorate our local fallen service members. The ceramic poppies were beautiful and created a lovely memorial. In the future, our goal is to expand this ceramic project so that the art installation will be on display in the local community and the poppies can become a fundraiser to benefit our local veteran community.

Our kick-off for next year’s project will be around Veteran’s Day in November 2024 so stay tuned! We will have local community build nights for the public to join us in this project, and also offer community service hours to students who help us by creating these poppies.

For more information or any questions, please see the information sheet or reach out to Linda McMillan at mcmillanl@region-12.org.

Astronomy Club students, agriscience students and AP Physics students have worked this year on refurbishing Shepaug's three old reflecting telescopes: The telescopes have mirrors of 4", 6" and 10" diameters. Cordelia Thorflyn, Anders Somoroff, Merlyn Moon, Grey Pomeroy, Garrett Roof and Piers Johnson have worked on removing, cleaning, reinstalling and adjusting the mirrors. Students Gabra Abdelmasseh, Cameron Goethner, Alex Lindsey, Matthew Napoli, Hannah Patrick and Garrett Roof in Mr. Belinsky's period 5 engineering class constructed dobsonian mounts for the 4" and 10" telescopes.

As the school year comes to a close, we are excited to announce that the final edition of Spartan Scope is now available for viewing. This edition is packed with a variety of engaging news packages and special messages to wrap up the year.

Featured Segments:

• Fall and Winter Sports Retrospective: Produced by Lexi Thomas, this segment takes a look back at the highlights and memorable moments from last season's sports activities.

• Overview of Shepaug's College & Career Center: Produced by Izzy Easley, Hailea Thompson, and Hadlie Marcoux, and featuring Ms. Decker, this segment provides an insightful overview of the resources and support available at the College & Career Center.

• Senior Projects Report: Produced by Lily Tobey and Lucia Pongracz, this news report covers the innovative and diverse projects undertaken by this year's seniors.

Additionally, don't miss the heartfelt "Have a Great Summer" messages from students and staff, wishing everyone a wonderful summer break.

This year, our TV Production and DMC students have showcased their creativity and talent through numerous news packages, Public Service Announcements, and music videos. We look forward to sharing more of their fantastic work with you in future editions of Spartan Scope next Fall.

Enjoy the summer and stay tuned for more exciting content!

By Diane Lash Decker

As summer approaches, the main theme in the College and Career Center has been RESUME building, and any student who wants a resume, needs a resume or thinks they should have one, please see me. Also, over the last few weeks, some sophomores were given the opportunity to view their transcripts, and the majority of them expressed feeling empowered after reviewing their academic records.

There will be a Career Day for 8th graders (rising freshmen) on June 12, and they will have the opportunity to meet individuals from a variety of professions, i.e., Advertisement, Military, EMT, Firefighting, Environmental Engineering and Veterinary. Also, the Summer Job Board remains current and accessible in the Center for any student looking for summer employment. And, as a side note, I continue to be in awe at the remarkable tenacity each senior displayed through their senior project presentations. I observed seniors who produced a documentary or a play, and seniors who fearlessly learned to swim or scuba dive, and ones who shared personal stories of adoption and family history. Trust me when I say that witnessing the growth and development of each student in the Class of 2024 has been incredibly inspiring.

Enjoy the Summer!

The Region 12 community educates, challenges, and inspires all learners to become compassionate, creative, and courageous individuals who are empowered by the knowledge, character, and perseverance to achieve their greatest potential within the global society.

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