The Panther Press

January 8, 2023 - Volume 5 - ISSUE 16

Welcome to the Whitman-Hanson Regional High School Newsletter! It is designed to keep everyone (parents, students, staff, and community members) informed of the many events that are happening in and around the school. It contains links, pictures, and videos so that you have a more interactive experience and the ability to learn more about various topics.

Communication is incredibly important to understanding so we ask that you share our news as much as possible. We also welcome feedback! It is the only way to continuously improve. So, please interact, get involved, and let us know what you think by contacting us and sharing our news!

January 16: No School - Martin Luther King Day

January 19: HS Delayed Opening

January 20: Early Release - Grading Day

January 23: Quarter 2/Semester 1 Ends

January 24: Quarter 3/Semester 2 Begins

January 25: Quarter 2/Semester 1 Grades available on Parent Portal

January 26: College Admissions Seminar 6:30PM-8:30PM in PAC

February 1-2: MCAS Biology Retest

February 2: HS Delayed Opening

February 10: Early Release - Professional Development

February 16: HS Delayed Opening

February 20-24: Winter Recess

March 2: HS Delayed Opening

March 8-9: MCAS ELA Retest

March 10: Early Release - Professional Development

March 14-15: MCAS Math Retest

March 16: HS Delayed Opening

March 20: HS Spring Sports Start

March 28-29 - MCAS ELA Grade 10 Students

March 30: HS Delayed Opening

March 31: Early Release - Grading Day

We all say we care about things or people. But do we really? Can we care more?

This is the first in a video series about how we can care more about ourselves and those around us. There are specific behaviors we have to focus on if we are going to show that we care about goals and helping others.

Think of the word as an acronym as we move forward in the series.

C = Communication

A = Accountability

R = Responsibility

E = Environment

Take the challenge presented and listen to the whole series. I look forward to hearing how it helps you reflect on what you care about.

Listen to the video for more and let me know what you think. I'd love to hear it!

Not everyone outside the walls of our awesome school get to see the fantastic things going on each day. This short video is meant to showcase some of the great things occurring at Whitman-Hanson Regional High School during the week!

Take a look and feel free to comment...this is our story...and everyone is part of it.

We hope that you will be able to join the School Counseling Department for Whitman-Hanson’s annual College Admissions Seminar that will be held on Thursday, January 26, 2023 at 6:30 p.m. in the Dr. John F. McEwan Performing Arts Center at the high school. This program promises to be an informative and interesting evening with presentations by college admissions professionals from Boston College, The University of Massachusetts - Boston, and Massasoit Community College. Topics to be covered include Opportunities at Two-Year Colleges, The College Search Process, The College Application Process, Selective College Admissions, and The College Essay. This program is available to all students, but we especially encourage all juniors and their parents to attend the WHRHS College Admissions Seminar. To sign up for the program, please follow this College Admissions Seminar Registration Link. You are also welcome to call/email the school counseling office at 781-618-7427 or Meghan.Rivera@whrsd.org if you have questions.

On January 25 and 26, counselors will be visiting grade 11 English classes for a lesson on post-secondary planning for juniors. In addition to this important lesson, juniors and their parents are encouraged to attend the College Admissions Seminar on January 26th. A Coffee with the Counselors with a focus on college/post-secondary planning for Junior parents will be held on February 10th. Sign up details for that event will be available soon.

Grief - Grief can make you feel like you’re losing your mind. Loss, whether expected or unexpected, leaves a person unprepared emotionally, physically and spiritually and can overload emotional, mental and spiritual systems all at once. As a parent, it can feel overwhelming and impossible to parent while grieving and supporting our children at the same time. Make sure to give yourself space when needed, and it is okay for your child to see you upset and grieving, it is a natural process and this will help teach them the importance of processing and grieving during loss. When supporting your grieving child, it is important to answer the questions they ask, even the hard ones, this is how they learn. Listen to their feelings, allow them to express themselves and how they feel about the loss. Talk about the person who passed. Even though it can hurt and bring up uncomfortable feelings, it is important to remember the person who died and let your child know it is okay to talk about them.

Here is some additional information on grieving while parenting and how to help a grieving child:

https://www.care.com/c/grieving-while-parenting-tips-for-coping/

https://www.dougy.org/resource-articles/how-to-help-a-grieving-child-1

Mindful Makers - Need a break? You are welcome to join “Mindful Makers” after school on Wednesdays at 3 PM in the library. The program is led by Mrs. Siden, School Adjustment Counselor, and Mrs. Nuby, School Psychologist. Enjoy walks, yoga, and connecting with friends and staff to learn about tools for managing stress.

School Counselors:

Mrs. Carrigan

Mr. Murphy

Mrs. Selig

Mrs. Cunha - Currently on leave. Please contact Ms.Rivera for assistance.

Mr. Amado
Ms. Rivera (Administrative Assistant)

School Adjustment Counselors:
Mrs. Siden: Grades 9 & 11
Mrs. Robichaud: Grades 10 & 12

Transition Room Counselors

Mrs. Scheim

Ms. Dauksevicz

Our Mighty Panther Math Team took fourth place at their 3rd meet of the school year last week at Rockland High School. Cam Golden was the high scorer for the WH team and scored the most points out of all the participants in the entire meet. Way to go Panthers!

Panther Math Team participants: Victoria Bessette, Leah Cataldo, Brianna Codio, Sean DiMattio, Mackenzie Flynn, Riley Getchell, Mia Gocal, Cameron Golden, Ron Isidor, Leila Keaney, Trey Lacandula, Bella Perry, Sydney Pires, Paige Regan, Noah Roberts and Matt Ward

If you are interested in joining the Math Team, please swing by Mr. McHugh’s room (229) after school on Thursdays. The team is especially looking for 9th and 10th grade students to join. It’s not too late! You can still join and get to participate in the last meet of the season.

Students in Mrs. Edkin’s Algebra I/II class made their own decoders to reveal secret messages about inverse functions and they also did some mathematical detective work with their investigation of Absolute Value functions. Allowing students to make observations and play with visual representations of concepts builds a strong foundation for more abstract ideas.

Students in Mrs. Harrison’s Algebra I class put on their Statistician hats to analyze scatter plots and to determine what weak, strong, positive and negative correlations look like. Groups worked together to sort the scatterplots by describing the attributes of the graphs with the language to describe them. Engaging in mathematical discourse helps students to learn concepts and vocabulary on a deeper level.

Students In Ms. Reagan’s Spanish classes have been learning about the similarities and differences between New Year’s Eve celebrations in various Spanish-speaking countries as well as El Día de los Reyes Magos traditions in class. We even wrote our wishes for the new year on grapes!

Level 1 students In Mrs. Cahill’s classes have been learning about los Reyes Magos. Here they are making "Zapatos" in preparation for el 6 de enero, el día de los Reyes Magos.

Students in Ms. Giglia’s Entrepreneurship and Investing Your Money classes were joined by guest speakers, Abby D’Amico and Abbie Burke, both of whom are also Whitman-Hanson alumni.

Guest speakers energize and inspire students by learning about real-world experiences. They offer a new perspective and add value of sharing knowledge that can engage student’s learning. They inspire students to get motivated and add variety to student learning in the classroom.

Abby (Newman) D’Amico, a certified financial planner and 2016 WH Alumni, talked to the Investing class about life in college at Bentley University and the steps in her career path as a Financial Advisor at Gage Wealth Advisors, a private wealth advisory practice of Ameriprise Financial Services. She answered an array of students' questions, including ways to save for college and invest in retirement. Students enjoyed having a young professional talk about her career path from business school to life in the working world.

Abbie Burke, an entrepreneur and Tik-Tok influencer, was a graduate of Whitman-Hanson in 2010. She shared her experience of running her own business called Cakes by Abby with Ms. Giglia’s Entrepreneurship classes. Students had the opportunity to hear Abby’s experience of running her business, both good and bad, and learn about the success of being a Tik-Tok influencer for one’s business.

History students have been exploring life during the Industrial Revolution through the use of primary sources. They have looked at living conditions, working conditions, and the emergence of new economic theories. This analysis has led students to confront many different issues: Did the Industrial Revolution make people's lives better or worse? Were the benefits worth the cost? Should one generation shoulder the burden for improvements that impact future generations?

Now that we have all returned from the holiday season, the winter season is back in full swing. Students and parents are reminded that academic eligibility to continue with winter sports and eligibility for spring sports is determined by second quarter grades which close in just a few weeks. Students are always allowed to arrive to practice late or even miss entirely if it is for academic reasons.

Now lets check in on our winter sports teams:

Whitman-Hanson Wrestling won 5 weight classes and finished in a close second place to Brockton HS at the First Annual Bob Gay Invitational held at WH Saturday. WH ended the day with 5 Champions the most of the 16 teams present. Wrestling Champion at 106 pounds was Sophomore Charlie Lussier. Charlie was 4-0 on the day with 3 pins and one tech fall 18-3 in the Finals. Charlie is now 20-0 on the season with 17 pins. Sophomore Champion Christian Grimaldi wrestled at 113 pounds and was 3-0 on the day with 3 pins including a come from behind down 11-1 pin in the finals. Christian is now 20-4 on the season with 15 pins. Junior Austin Gamber wrestling at 132 pounds was 2-2 on the day and finished in 4th place. Austin is now 15-6 on the season with 12 pins. Senior Captain Braden Kain was 4-0 at 138 pounds. Champion Braden won a hard fought match by injury default in the finals. Braden now has 25 wins with only 2 losses with 18 pins. Wrestling Champion at 145 pounds Senior Captain Aidan Guiliani also won a hard fought 2-1 decision in his finals match. Aidan was 3-0 on the day and is now 19-2 on the season with 13 pins. Rounding out the Champions for WH was 285 pound Senior Captain Maddox Colclough. Maddox was 3-0 on the day with 2 pins. Maddox is now 14-4 on the season with 11 pins.

The Panthers are now 3-3-2 on the season and 0-1 in the Patriot league Keenan Division. Next up for WH is a Patriot League match at Plymouth North on Wednesday January 11, start time is 7:00pm.

Whitman Hanson Gymnastics (124.85) had an incredible WIN tonight over Plymouth (123.85) and a loss to Hingham/Hull (131.05)! This was a huge improvement for WH from their first meet earlier in the season. Highlights include senior captain Sarah Regan’s beautiful 8.0 beam routine, freshman Paige Happeny’s 8.2 floor routine where she competed her full for the first time, sophomore Katelyn Ferraro’s amazing tumbling on floor and powerful vault both with an 8.3, and senior captain Riley Getchell’s solid 8.2 beam score and graceful floor routine with an 8.4.

The girls basketball team (5-3; 5-0) defeated Patriot League Keenan division rival Hingham on Friday night by the final score of 69-44. Nine players scored for the Panthers. Freshman Jenna Mishou recorded her first career double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds. The Panthers are undefeated in Massachusetts with their only 3 losses coming on their recent trip to Florida where they played against some of the best teams in the country. The team is back in action Tuesday night on the road at Duxbury.

In boys basketball, the Panthers have won three straight after winning their final game of their Florida trip and two home wins this week against Patriot League opponents. On Friday, Sophomore Ryan Baker (25 points/10 rebounds) and Senior captain Drew Daley (16 points) led Whitman-Hanson to an 80-63 win over Hingham in Patriot League action. Freshman Isaiah Bean-Britain added 10 points while Junior Evan Yakavonis tossed in 9 for the Panthers who improve to 5-2 (4-1 in Patriot League).

The boy/girl doubleheader Friday was a special community event as the gym was packed with a sea of Blue in support of Team Trippy. Tripp and his mom Katie are spending time with their family The Alexander’s of Hanson and his extended WH family while he receives treatment for an inoperable brain tumor at Boston Children’s Hospital. The towns definitely showed up to support this great cause as $1865 was raised. Karen McKee won the ugg raffle and Susan Kearns (Tripp’s aunt) won the lottery basket.

The Whitman-Hanson Girls Track and Field team (2-1) downed Plymouth North Friday evening at the Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Center 57.66 - 42.33. Winners for the Panthers included Senior Captain Sydney Pires who took first place in both the Long Jump (14' 9.75") and 300 Meter Dash (47.77.) And it was Senior Captain Anne Tilley winning the High Jump at 4' 5". Sophomore McKenna McCarthy crushed her Personal Record with a 12:19.25 in the Two-Mile to win the event and Junior Sky Bucci-Anderson won the Mile in an impressive 5:44.43. Freshman Gabrielle Amado won the 100 Meter Run for the 3rd consecutive time this season with a strong 3:40.11 finish.

The Whitman Hanson Boys Track and Field team competed against Plymouth North High School and although there were some very good Panther efforts the boys lost 67.25 t0 32.75. Noteworthy efforts included Senior Captain Noah Roberts winning the Long Jump 18’5.25” and Shot Put 37’6” both were personal records for Noah. Senior Captain Anthony Pires won the 55 High Hurdles 9.83 a personal record and ran in the 600m run for the first time and captured 3rd with a 1:39.65 effort. Junior Logan Bourgelas ran a 4:55.17 PR to win the mile and ran an impressive 40.43 in the 300M. Junior Alex Kehayias ran 11:20.94 to win the 2 mile, and finished 2nd in the mile with a 5:17.87 effort. Also of note was having three Panther boys: Jake Cappeletti, Tyler Molinari and Ryan Crowley all clear 5 feet in the High Jump. Whitman Hanson boys’ record stands at 0-3.

The boys hockey team battled Scituate Wednesday but came out on the short end of a 5-3 final. The Panthers got on the board first with a rebound goal by Senior Matt Solari. The sailors scored mid way through the third to make it 1-1. The Sailors scored first in the second to make it 2-1 before Junior Luke Tropeano split the Sailors defenseman, received a pass from Solari, and scored on a breakaway to tie the game 2-2. Sailors scored on a 2 on 1 late in the second, added another goal in the third to take a 4-2 lead half way through the third period. Junior Alex Ethier scored a goal on the power play, with a shot pass from Freshmen Zach Boss to cut the Sailors lead to one. Unfortunately for the Panthers the Sailors added an empty net goal with just over a minute left to seal the 5-3 victory. The Panthers, who are 4-4, got a nice break to rest as their next game isn't until Wednesday at Dartmouth.

Our girls hockey team continues to play great as they beat West Bridgewater/East Bridgewater twice. In the first game they snapped a 2-2 third period tie when Brooke Hohmann scored two goals to give WH/SL the win. In the rematch at home, WHSL controlled the game winning 6-3. Hohmann scored two more while Sam Webb and Caitlin Dilley added tallies as well.

The Girls Swim Team also had another great performance coming in 2nd place in the Medley Relay (Josephine Eldridge, Chase Lovett, Briell Shelly, Ava Mctighe-Tassinari) with a time of 2:21:87 and took 3rd place in the 200 Free Relay (Anna Billings, Josephine Eldgride, Ava Mctighe-Tassinari, Brielle Shelly) with a time of 2:12:44. Chase Lovett placed 1st place in the 500 Freestyle with a time of 6:46, along with Brielle Shelly placed 1st place in the 100 Fly with a time of 1.08.53. The girls swim team also had many personal best times, Anna Billings in the 200 Freestyle with a time of 2:55:25 & in the 100 Freestyle with a time of 1:16:81, Brielle Shelly in the 50 freestyle with a time of 28.50 & in the 100 Fly with a time of 1:08.53, Emerson Constant in the 50 freestyle with a time of 42:69, Ariel Brouwer in the 50 Freestyle with a time of 44.15, Jenna Preston in the 50 Freestyle with a time of 53.56, Josephine Eldridge in the 100 Freestyle with a time of 1:16:88 & in the 100 Breaststroke with a time of 1:31:00, Chase Lovett in the 500 Freestyle with a time of 6:46 & 100 Breast stroke with a time of 1:25:09, Alex Berkachi in the 100 Freestyle with a time of 1:42:55. The Boys and Girls Swim Team will be playing Pembroke Tuesday January 10.2023.

The Boys Swim Team turned in a great performance coming in 2nd in the Medley Relay (Wesley Hawley, Andrew Curtin, Jake Foley, Matt Ward) with a time of 2:11:53 and 3rd place (Harrison Chase, Nikhil Harish, Andrew Dibonna, Connor Sherry) with a time of 2:34:18. The Boys also took 1st place in the 200 Free Relay (Matt Ward, Nikhil Harish, Jake Foley, Wesley Hawley) With a time of 1.55.72. They Boys Swim Team had a many personal best times, Wesley Hawley in the 200 IM with a 2:49:72, Jake Foley in the 50 Free with a time of 29.41, Andrew DiBona in the 50 free with a 34:37 & 100 Backstroke with a 1:26:52, Matt Ward in 100 Freestyle with a time of 1:08.45 & 100 Breaststroke with a 1:39:45, Harrison Chase in 100 Freestyle with a 1:17.05, Nikhil Harish in the 100 Breaststroke with a time of 1:28.27, Andrew Curtin in the 500 Freestyle with a time of 7:56:71 & the 100 Breast stroke with a time of 1:22.09.

Our cheerleaders have been hard at work as the prepare for the Patriot League Championships which will be held next month of February 15th at Plymouth North High School.

Interested in more videos, reflections, and where a many of these ideas come from and are expanded on? Don't forget to check out and subscribe to my YouTube Channel and WordPress Site

Email: christopher.jones@whrsd.org
Website: https://www.whrsd.org/our-schools/whrhs
Location: 600 Franklin Street, Whitman, MA, USA
Phone: (781) 618-7020
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DrCSJones
Twitter: @DrCSJones

If so, we are happy to announce a second virtual FAFSA Night for Whitman-Hanson students and families on January 19th at 6 PM via Zoom. Families participating will be able to get personalized help to complete the FAFSA. For more information, click here for a flier and registration link.