
January
Chief Report
Message from Principal Baldassano
Please allow me to wish all of our PHS students and families a Happy Belated New Year. It’s hard to believe it, but January has come and gone and PHS is as busy as ever. We hosted our annual Piscataway Experience, an opportunity to showcase the amazing offerings here at PHS. Some of our engineering students were featured on CBS news for their achievements in NASA’s TechRise Challenge, and our Social Studies Department learned about Haitian Culture and worked on a Holocaust Memorial Mural. To learn more about these events, and all of the other happenings here at PHS, read on.
AP Physics Students - Get Creative
Thank you to all AP Physics students who worked hard to create this year’s interactive holiday science display. The theme for the door is a North Pole Telegraph Office. The AP Physics students set up a Morse code sender to allow students to SOS Santa about a plasma storm at the North Pole. The sending circuit uses a signal generator and speakers to emit a tone at a frequency typically associated with Morse code every time the sending button is tapped. At the same time, LEDs light up on the harness of Santa’s reindeer to visually display the message to Santa as it is typed in by the students.
The plasma storm in the miniature North Pole village, seen through a window in the Telegraph office, is simulated by a plasma globe. Students can touch the globe to see electrons flow through the electric field created by the electron emitter at the center. The AP Physics students have also set up an “Elves Wanted” job applications section in the Telegraph Office. This section contains two student-created interactive electrical quiz boards that students can use to determine if they qualify to apply for the positions of candy shop clerk or Santa’s helper naughty and nice analyst. When one candy cane electrode is attached to the question and the other is attached to the correct answer, a string of LEDs lights up. There are also instruction sheets for students to take on how to build their electrical quiz board and a link for building your morse code sender. Please see the link below for pictures of the door.
NJ American Water Visit
On January 5th, Piscataway High School's ChemClub hosted guest speakers from the New Jersey American Water (NJAW) company, which is the company that provides tap water to the entire township of Piscataway. Ms. Doreene Bennett, Senior External Affairs Specialist presented career opportunities at NJAW. Dr. Lauren Weinrich, the Principal Scientist of R&D, spoke about the chemistry of water treatment and led students in a hands-on activity to purify a cup of water mixed with dirt. Over 30 PHS students attended the talk. The PHS ChemClub is an official chartered club of the American Chemical Society.
Freshman Seminar & Freshman Seminar Mentor Course
Throughout 2nd marking period, Freshman Seminar classes participated in a Culture Tour Door Decorating Competition, led by their mentors. Each class was assigned a culture that they researched before decorating their door for the competition. The top 3 scores for door decorating were earned by Ms. Awich’s class, Mrs. Youssef’s period 4B, and Mrs. Youssef’s period 3A. Honorable mentions: Ms. Geyer’s, Mr. Hilton’s, and Mr. Virgone’s classes.
Pictures to choose from (Jamaica is one of the winners): https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1dlKYW915y8BltyhGE6mwmS1WXxxPCHBN?usp=share_link
Freshman Seminar classes and LIFT students enjoyed a guest speaker in January. Ssanyu Lukoma, a teen entrepreneur, author, and activist, presented 'Creating Your Strategy to Change the World', sharing her experiences as an entrepreneur and encouraging students to find a passion project that helps others. More about Ssanyu: At the age of 13, Ssanyu founded Brown Kids Read, a non-profit organization dedicated to motivating all children, but especially children of color, to read more diverse literature. Ssanyu is also the host of a podcast called The Book Junkie. She is the Communications Director for a broadcasting company called KiDz HuB Media Network. She is the author of a children’s book, Suubi’s Sunny Smile, and is currently working on her second book, Chi-Chi’s Toothy Grin.
Picture:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1MTEvdNF1Wetu_6u1FzQ2aVStNFKyFx46/view?usp=share_link
P-Way Parent shares Haitian Culture
On Friday, January 6th, Ms. Ninette Diogene taught students about Soup Joumou and its significance in Haiti. She also brought enough for students to enjoy along with a vegan option and ginger tea.
Ms. Diogene explained that for Haitians, soup joumou is synonymous with freedom. During French colonial rule of Haiti, enslaved Africans were forced by their oppressors to cultivate squash for this dish but were not allowed to eat it. So when Haitians won their independence on Jan. 1, 1804, they ate soup joumou to celebrate. The tradition continues around the world wherever there are Haitian communities. Students from Mr. Virgone’s, Mrs. Cregar-Porch’s, and Mr. Daly’s World Cultures classes enjoyed authentic Haitian New Year’s soup.
Ms. Diaz's Class - Facing History
Lynn Diaz's Facing History Class completed a Mural Project which is displayed outside of room 206 over in Patton. See the image below. The class created a Holocaust Memorial Mural. Students worked in groups to develop a piece of the class mural to memorialize the victims of a specific group targeted during the Holocaust. Each group created a portion of the mural on a triangle and joined the triangles into a Star of David. This “mural” demonstrates an understanding of several victim groups who experienced the Holocaust just in time for the annual International Holocaust Remembrance Day.
Congratulations, to our PHS Hydrogen Fuel Cell Club and first-year advisor, Engineering & Architecture Teacher, Mr. Farid Hamrani. The students placed in two categories at the 2022 Avenues in Motion, Hydrogen Car Challenge (H2 Challenge) also known as the Hydrogen Fuel Cell Competition. The Hydrogen Car Challenge is a hands-on STEM competition designed to educate students about the existence of alternative fuels. The Piscataway HS students competed against students from seven other New Jersey High Schools including Belleville HS, Boonton HS, Madison HS, New Providence HS, Newton HS, Roxbury HS, and Union County Magnet HS. Piscataway’s Team #1 "The Bats" won 1st place for Craftsmanship and Team #2 “Hydro Odyssey” came in 3rd place for Speed. In attendance at the competition to support the PHS students were Engineering Teacher, Ms. Ghania Layachi, and retired PHS Engineering Teacher and former Hydrogen Fuel Cell Club advisor, Mr. Charlie Giacomarra. The PHS students on the winning teams are:
1st Place: Craftsmanship
Team: The Bats
IDIOMA CLAUDIA ISABEL
NGUYEN MARYANN
BOUZI RAOUL-MICHEL
MALIK SHAMEER
and
3rd Place: Speed
Team: The Hydro Odyssey
SYAL KANIKA
MILEVA MEGLENA
GUNTUR ANANYA
GUNTUR BRINDA
Once again, congratulations to the PHS Hydrogen Fuel Cell Club and advisor Mr. Hamrani!
PHS Honors Chamber Orchestra Tour | Christopher Sumner
The PHS Honors Chamber Orchestra took their annual tour to Arbor, Grandview, Eisenhower, MLK, Knollwood, Randolphville, and The Lakeview School. Our PHS musicians shared music with our youngest students and talked about the opportunities in the orchestra that exist for students in the future. Thanks, to Christopher Sumner for this incredible experience for our larger school community!
December Concerts
PHS music ensembles gave concerts in December! Our students shared all of their musical achievements with our community and performed at such a high level. We are so proud of our students and so grateful to our outstanding music educators for sharing their artistry with our students! Thank you to Chris Sumner, Ken Zampella, and Grace Gardner.
PHS Theatre at Paper Mill Playhouse | Michael Yoson
Academy and Upper-Level PHS Theatre students attended a performance of The Sound of Music at Paper Mill Playhouse as part of the Adopt-a-School program. Students had a workshop with a Paper Mill teaching artist before the performance and got to work with other Adopt-a-School students from across the state. Thank you to Mike Yoson.
PHS Dance Experiences | Jessica Taylor
PHS Dance students attended a performance of American Repertory Ballet’s Nutcracker at the State Theatre. Members of the Chiefs Dance Team also attended a workshop with the Complexions Dance Team at Montclair State University! Thank you to Jessica Taylor for providing these opportunities!
PHS Wall of Gratitude | Dorothy Amme
Students in Dorothy Amme’s Drawing and Painting classes at PHS created miniature artwork reflecting on gratitude. This tiny gallery of gratitude is on display in the classroom for students to share and observe. Thanks to Dorothy Amme!
Ceramic Pumpkins | Mary Wartenburg
Check out these ceramic pumpkins created by our PHS Ceramic students! Thanks Mrs. Wartenburg!
PHS Arts Alumni Give Back | Kira Harris, Jace Pastras, & Marques Stewart
PHS Arts Alumni returned to PHS before winter break to share their experiences with our students. Kira Harris and Jace Pastras held an alumni panel for our arts academy students and Marques Stewart worked with our musical theatre class. We are so grateful to our alumni for all they have given to our students.
French Club Students
Holiday Door Contest Winner
Congratulations - Mr. Mazur & Engineering Students
See the exciting news about Mr. Mazur and our Engineering Students that appeared on CBS News recently.