Lexington High School
Newsletter
June 2012
Volume 28, number 9
From the Principal
T
–Natalie K. Cohen, Principal
oward the end of the school year the calendar
fills up with end-of-term activities, celebrations, awards events and closures of every
kind imaginable. But it’s also a perfect time to stop
and reflect on the teachers who have made indelible
marks on our lives. I have several in my life, and
I’m sure you do as well. Please think about those
teachers who have made large contributions to your
success, satisfaction and accomplishments.
May
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
June
Friday
Saturday
And please enjoy one of my favorite essays,
written by Washington Post syndicated columnist Kathleen Parker (who was awarded the 2010
Pulitzer Prize for commentary).
Sunday
One of President Obama’s consistent education
themes has been the wish that every child cross
paths with that one teacher who hits the light
switch and changes one’s life.
Wednesday
Friday
Monday
“Remembering a teacher who turned the lights
on” by Kathleen Parker
Each time he expresses some iteration of that
thought, I suspect thousands or millions think
briefly of the person who held that distinction in
their life. The light master. Or, in my case, the one
who extended an imaginary sprig of verbena and,
holding it to his nose, inhaled deeply in a gesture
of solidarity with William Faulkner.
That scene just described took place in my 11thgrade English class, oh, a few years ago. The teacher
was mine for only three months, but he changed my
life in a flicker of light. I thought of him Monday
when––if you’ll grant me this small indulgence––I
was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for commentary.
On such occasions, one is expected to recognize
those who have helped along the way. But also on
such occasions, one is likely to be a bit distracted
and unable to remember one’s own name, much
less those that deserve mention. I would like to
Continued on page 2
Monday
Tues-Weds
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Monday
Tuesday
29
30
30
30
30
31
31
1
2
2
3
Swing Nite, 7 pm, Commons II
Plant Sale, 9am-noon, Worthen Rd. tent
Spring A Cappella Jamboree, $10, $5, 7:30 pm, aud
Graduation, Tsongas Arena, Lowell, MA; concert
at 12:30pm, ceremony at 2 pm
4
NHS Induction Ceremony, 7-8 pm, aud
5-6
MCAS testing - Biology - for gr.10. Delayed start at
9:30 am for grs. 9, 11
5
Grade 8 Step Up Day [See p.10]
5
Junior Book Awards Night, 7-8 pm, Library Media
Center
6
Fall Sports night, 6pm, aud
8
Farewell coffee for Mrs. Cohen, 8-9am Commons II
11
School Council mtg, 7pm, guid.conf.room
11
Final exam review day
12
Final exam review day
13
Finals: 8:30-10:30 and 12 noon-2pm
14
Final exam: 8:30-10:30; optional (drop in) review
15Finals: 8:30-10:30 and 12 noon-2pm
15
Improv Troupe, 7:30 pm, Blackbox Theater
18
Conflict and Makeup exams, 8:30-10:30am
19
Last day of school if no more snow days [tentative]
August
Tuesday
Wednesday
Friday
Senior Athletes Dinner, 6:30pm, Commons II
Cap & gown distribution, 9:30 & 1:30 pm
Graduation rehearsal, mandatory, 10:30am, Field House
Senior Barbecue, noon, senior quad
Senior Awards Night, 6:30-8:30pm, aud
Improv Troupe, 7:30 pm, Blackbox Theater
Senior Prom, Danversport Yacht Club
28
29
31
Full day, gr. 9 students
Full day, all students
No School
September
Monday
3
Labor Day- No School
Monday
17
Holiday - No School
Wednesday
26
Holiday - No School
______________________
For Athletics schedules, visit http://lps.lexingtonma.org/domain/657
0
The calendar was compiled in mid May and events are subject to
change. Call the department involved for up-to-date information.
Lexington High School Newsletter
From the Principal continued from page 1
correct the record with one who stands out and who, as it happens, is
celebrating his 50th year of teaching.
I materialized in James Gasque’s class in March of the school year for
reasons that will have to wait another day. Suffice to say, I knew no one
and had come from a small high school in Central Florida where, for some
reason, no one had bothered to teach the diagramming of sentences.
Thus, my fellow students at Dreher High School were way ahead of
me when Mr. Gasque finally called on me to identify some part of
a sentence he had written on the blackboard. His back to the class
with chalk in hand, he stood poised to write my instructions.
Every living soul knows the feeling of helplessness when a crowd of peers
awaits the answer you do not know. Whatever I said was utterly ridiculous, I suppose, because all my classmates erupted in peals of laughter.
I have not forgotten that moment, or the next, during all these years.
As I was trying to figure out how to hurl myself into a fetal curl
under my desk, Mr. Gasque tossed me a sugarcoated, tangerinecolored lifesaver from the good ship lollipop.
June 2012
PHONE NUMBERS REFERENCE
Principal Natalie K. Cohen..............................
.........................................861-2320, ext. 1000
Assoc. Principal Laura Lasa ...........................
.........................................861-2320, ext. 1003
Dean Charles Caliri..........861-2320, ext. 1420
Dean Nancy DeFeudis.....861-2320, ext. 7020
Dean JoAnn Kilpatrick....861-2320, ext. 5020
Dean David Lautman.......861-2320, ext. 3040
For attendance, call the appropriate
administrator for your child before 9:30 am
on the day of the absence.
He whirled. No perfectly executed pirouette can top the spin executed
by Mr. Gasque that day. Suddenly facing the class, he flushed crimson and his voice trembled with rage.
“Don’t. You. Ever. Laugh. At her. Again.” he said. “She can out-write
every one of you any day of the week.”
It is not possible to describe my gratitude. Time suspended and I
dangled languorously from a fluff of cloud while my colleagues
drowned in stunned silence. I dangle even now, like those silly participles I eventually got to know. Likely no one but me remembers Mr.
Gasque’s act of paternal chivalry, but I basked in those words and in
the thought that what he said might be true. I started that day to try to
write as well as he said I could. I am still trying.
Mr. Gasque’s even greater gifts belong to all who ever sat in his class.
That sprig of verbena, a recurring symbol in “The Unvanquished,”
stays in my mind because it also symbolizes the great passion Mr.
Gasque brought to teaching and to the literature he loved.
During my 12 weeks or so in his class, we devoured “The Unvanquished” and John Steinbeck’s “Of Mice and Men.” I remember
every word and sensation.
“I’ve always wanted to lean down from my back stoop and pluck
a sprig of verbena,” he said, inhaling deeply. Exhaling and tilting
his head back, he closed his eyes and seemed to drift off into some
lemony-scented world where verbena is the smell of courage. I
closed my eyes and followed him.
A couple of decades later, having moved back to South Carolina, I
went looking for Mr. Gasque, toting a pot of verbena. He didn’t remember me, but upon hearing my tale, asked that I speak to his class.
Afterward, his cheeks streaked with tears, he presented me with two
lined pieces of notebook paper––my essay on “The Unvanquished.”
Obama is right about the power of teachers. Thank you, Mr. Gasque.
2
LHS homepage..http://lps.lexingtonma.org/
Domain/8
PTSA website...https://sites.google.com/site/lexingtonhighptsa/
School Committee email:
school-com@comet.ci.lexington.ma.us
The Lexington High School
Newsletter
Editor
Jean Cole
email: jeancole@sch.ci.lexington.ma.us
Next deadline:
August 15, 2012
Lexington High School Newsletter
June 2012
PTSA News
With Thanks and Gratitude
T
here are many parents who
volunteer their time behind the
scenes for the LHS/PTSA and
have been working since January or
in some cases all year long who we
now want to recognize. We thank
them for the time they volunteer and
for their contributions to the PTSA
organization.
Our COMMUNICATIONS team keeps
us all in the loop. Thank you to our
newsletter editor Jean Cole who
creates nine fantastic newsletters per
year with amazing ease. Thanks to
Geeta Kannan who has done an awesome job as our list server administrator for the past two years and is now
‘graduating’ LHS as her child does
the same. Many thanks to Yuki Casey
who helped us get our website www.
LHSPTSA.org up and running. We
wish her and her family well with
their move to California.
Our FORUMS are only possible by the
organizational work of our Forums
Co-Chair Kim Effron and the presenters and speakers who have donated
their time at one of the five annual
forums. Attendance on our forums
was up from last year. Thank you to
parents and students for their attendance. Early in the year we asked parents to try to come to at least one over
the course of the year for important
parenting information and you came
through!
One of the most looked forward to
events for staff is the PTSA STAFF
APPRECIATION LUNCHEONS held
in the fall and spring. Thanks to our
super Co-Chairs Rachel Cortez and
Jen Vogelzang who pull it all together
and to all the parents who donate
food and volunteer to set up and
serve. The teachers and staff express
Eighth Annual
Landscaping Plant
Sale 6/2
LHS Landscaping’s annual plant
sale will occur on Saturday, June 2,
9 AM-12 Noon, under a tent right on
Worthen Road in front of the High
School. We will have the usual large
variety of perennials, and some annuals, and assorted bushes and small
trees for sale. Our prices are rock bottom and we love bulk purchases!
Bring your own potted up,
HEALTHY BUG-FREE extra plants
to the sale and you will take home
one plant of your choice for FREE.
Of course, we hope you will take
home many more. All proceeds go
to our summer landscaping work
program, which hires LHS students
to weed and water the grounds of the
High School.
continued on page 12
Landscaping Committee
NEW BOARDWALK OVER MEADOW
S
ome of you have probably
noticed the boardwalk/”bridge”
which now traverses the path the kids
have cut through the retention basin
which sits between Worthen Road and
the Arts and Humanities Building.
LHS Landscaping, with the aid of 31
students over two weekends, recently
completed building this structure, as
well as laying a stone dust path and
planting various native species near
the struts under the boardwalk.
The basin itself functions as a drainage
area for the large parking lot, helping to avoid floods during periods of
3
snow and rain. After its construction in
2000, it was covered with topsoil and
pretty much left to grow ad lib.
Landscaping for years has envisioned
a more intentional meadow in that
area. LHS administration and maintenance for years have envisioned less
mud being tracked into the school
from there and other areas––one of
the major reasons our committee came
into existence. Everyone has been
keenly aware that this grassy area is
among the first vision guests have of
our High School, and that we want
that view to create a good impression.
With the building of the boardwalk
and the commitment of the town to
mow the west side of the meadow
(leaving the east side for wildflowers
and select trees and shrubs), we are a
lot closer to all goals. Lexington is a
town committed to maintaining open,
natural spaces, as well as carefully
constructed ones, and we intend for
the meadow to reflect that.
Please enjoy “taking a walk on the
boardwalk” one of these days, especially as wildflowers start to bloom and our
summer landscaping program works to
maintain and enhance that area!
Lexington High School Newsletter
June 2012
All-Night Graduation Party June 3, 2012
Senior parents are responsible for
decoration take down on Monday at
5:30 a.m., so please sign up for one
of the many tear-down tasks using the
same sign up website below.
To volunteer, go to:
http://tiny.cc/ka6tbw
NIGHT OWLS needed
Parents without seniors are needed to
Chaperone for the second (12-2:30
a.m.) and third (2-5 a.m.) shifts. Please
email Susie Moser <susietom2000@
yahoo.com>.
G
raduation is almost here and
we’re wrapping up the details
for the Midnight Madness
celebration. Over 90% of the graduating class will attend this remarkable
event. The party provides a fun, safe,
alcohol-free place for our graduating
seniors to spend one last time together.
This year’s party will be held on Sunday, June 3 from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. the
next morning in the LHS Field House.
This year’s Madness will have something for everyone––DJ and karaoke,
a hypnotist, inflatable obstacle course,
fabulous hair styling and airbrush tattoos. Great food, Mad decorations and
great friends will make this an extra
special night for the graduates.
DONATIONS to help offset the cost of
the party are greatly appreciated.
The ticket price for students only
covers half the cost of the party. If
you would like to make a monetary
donation, please make a check payable
to LHS Graduation Celebrations Committee and mail to 54 Munroe Road,
Lexington 02421. We also welcome
gift cards to places like Best Buy, Target, iTunes, etc, which we will raffle
off during the party. Please contact
Kris Maeda <kris.maeda@gmail.com>
with any questions.
TICKETS
Spend a little time with the seniors
before graduation. Help sell and distribute tickets at LHS for the ANGP on
Wednesday, May 30 between 9:151:45. Senior parents can help with
this! Please email <angp_tickets@
yahoo.com> if you are interested.
T-Shirt Contest Winners
The 2012 LHS All-Night Graduation
Party T-shirt Contest was a great success. Participants submitted illustrations reflecting the party’s Midnight
Madness theme. Congratulations
go out to the two winners who each
received a cash award. This year’s
graduates will be both ahead and
behind the times with senior Evan
Sloane’s grandfather clock on their
backs and senior Anika Voss’ starburst
clock on the front.
DECORATIONS
Much help is still needed to transform
the Field House for the party. Parents,
alumni and community members are
invited to help decorate. Set up begins
Friday, June 1, 1 p.m.-9 p.m.;
Saturday, June 2, 9 a.m.-3 p.m.; and
again on
Sunday, June 3, 9 a.m.-noon
(or whenever we are done). Any
amount of time you can give will be
appreciated. No special skills needed.
4
PTSA HOSTS FAREWELL COFFEE
FOR NATALIE COHEN
Friday, June 8, 8-9 a.m.
Please join the PTSA as we bid a fond farewell to departing
Principal Natalie Cohen at a coffee on Friday, June 8 from
8-9 a.m. in Commons II. All current LHS parents and parents
of LHS alumni are welcome to attend, sign a card for her and
wish her well in her retirement.
Lexington High School Newsletter
June 2012
3
Performing Arts Department
3
LHS Choruses Present
World-Premiere Performance
of New Choral Work
Annual Music Department Awards
On March 7, the 200-voice combined choruses and Lexington High School Percussion Ensemble presented the worldpremiere performance of a new choral work by Cambridge
based composer, Carson Cooman.
The ten-minute work entitled There Will Be Stars is in four
movements and is based on the poetry of American poet
Sara Teasdale (1884-1933). Cooman reflects on the prevalance of stars and sky images in Teasdale’s poetry and often
uses the tintinnabular quality of the percussion instruments
to paint a picture of glimmering starlight.
The piece was commissioned by Lexington High School
Director of Choruses, Jason Iannuzzi, with joint funds from
vocal music student activities and a generous grant from
FOLMADS (Friends of Lexington Music, Art and Drama,
Inc.). As part of the commission, the composer visited LHS
and worked with our singers and members of the percussion ensemble. Cooman was very impressed by the quality
of our ensembles, and even requested our recording of the
work to use as a reference for future performances.
We are looking forward to the 2012-2013 season, as FOLMADS has approved a grant for a commission by composer
Nathan Jones to compose a piece to mark the 40th anniversary of Lexington High School’s Madrigal Singers. Many
thanks once again to FOLMADS President Debi Zilberman
and the Friends of Lexington Music, Art and Drama Students
for their unwavering support of our program!
– Jason Iannuzzi
Spring A Cappella Jamboree
Saturday, June 2, $15, $10
7:30 pm, Gillespie Auditorium
English Department
2012 Scholastic Writing Awards
We are pleased to announce two students who received
honors in the 2012 Scholastic Writing Awards.
Sarah Zhang, ’14, won an honorable mention for a short
story.
Ellen Meyers, ’ 13, won a Silver Key for her essay, “It’s
Complicated.”
5
3
Bass/DiDomenico Scholarship – Sophia Bernitz
Donald J. Gillespie Award – Garrett Parrish
Ellalou Dimmock Award – Aldila Yunus
Lexington Symphony Award – Thomas Wong
Lexington Music Club – Stephanie Atwood
3
Lexington Music Club – Kenny Wong-Labow
Lexington Music School – Dan Schlosser
Lexington Music School – Olivia Wendel
Sandra L. Davies Unsung Hero Award – Isaac Levien
Fine Arts Department
3
Congressional Art Competition
Damian Bearneschi’s student Sheryl Zhang won the 2012
Congressional Art Competition for a colored pencil piece
titled “Conch Shell.” Only one award is given to students
in each congressional district throughout the country.
Sheryl’s artwork will be shown in the White House for one
year. Later today, she will be meeting with Congressperson
Ed Markey. On June 20, she will be going to the national
award ceremony in Washington, D.C.
Film Festival First Prize
James Cullen and Gabby Cortez (students of Mary Pappas) are the First Prize winners of this year’s Annual Film
Festival. They were awarded $200 from LexMedia for their
short film “Fifty People, One Question.” You can watch
the winning video here:(use Safari to view) < http://www.
youtube.com/watch?v=nFEC0G6LnDg >..
Recently English teacher Robin Strizhak was
given the Presidents Award for commitment
and dedication to the Special Olympics The
award was given last night here in Lexington
by the President of Special Olympics Bob
Johnson. Congratulations on a well deserved
award.
Lexington High School Newsletter
June 2012
PTSA Forum - May 8, 2012
Social Host Liability Forum Very Informative
by Mary Heveran, Secretary, PTSA
At the May 8 PTSA Forum, Attorney
Richard Campbell from the law firm
of Campbell, Campbell, Edwards and
Conroy, shared the real-life stories of
the victims of underage drinking as
well as the party hosts who have been
prosecuted under the Social Host Liability Law. Julie Fenn, LPS Prevention Specialist and LHS parent, and
two officers of the Lexington Police
Department, also attended to share
their stories and advice for parents
regarding underage drinking.
I am not an attorney and therefore do
not want to give out legal information,
but I do want to share that this program is very effective at hitting home
the legal consequences of hosting a
party. I learned that it is extremely
important to know the law and discuss this topic with your children. In
all 50 states, you need to be 21 years
old in order to drink legally. I highly
recommend checking out the website developed by the presenting law
firm, www.socialhostliability.org. It
contains excellent information about
the Social Host Liability Law here in
Massachusetts.
There were several comments that
stood out for me from the presentation
that I want to share:
• Data shows that the majority of
underage drinkers drink in a private
home.
• The primary source of alcohol was
home access.
• Sexual misconduct rises greatly
with alcohol use.
• Kids drink to get drunk.
• Parents often mistakenly assume
that they have control of the behav-
6
ior of kids in their own home, so if
the party is at your house, everyone
should be fine.
• The consequences of hosting a
party at your house with underage
drinking can be far greater than you
ever expected.
• Allowing a minor to possess alcohol on your property––even if you
did not supply alcohol, say someone
brought it with them to your home
––can result in a $2000 fine or jail
time for violating the law.
• If your child hosts a party where
alcohol is served––even if he/she
did not serve it––your child can go
to jail.
• If someone leaves your party after
drinking in your home and ends up
as a traffic fatality, you, as the host,
can be charged with manslaughter
and, if convicted, you can serve up
to 20 years in state prison.
Mr. Campbell gave real life examples
of individuals convicted of many of
the above scenarios.
The Lexington Police Officers shared
a very common scenario that they see
here in Lexington. Typically, a neighbor calls to report a loud party. When
the police arrive, they find that the
sheer number of cars present a huge
safety problem. The kids usually take
off running when they see the police,
thereby putting themselves in greater
danger by running across streets and
highways. There is almost always
alcohol at the party. Usually, the
homeowner is not there. There is often
a lot of property damage and personal
property missing. The officers usually find out that the minor hosting the
party did not intend for this to happen and lost control of the situation.
Word spreads about a party so quickly
thanks to Facebook and cell phones.
Advice from the Police Officers
Parents need to tell their kids to call
the police if they find themselves in
this situation. The police are there to
help and they want to diffuse the situation safely. Parents need to be diligent
in knowing where their kids are and
what they are doing.
Julie Fenn (LHS Prevention Specialist) shared with the group that in her
position at the High School she hears
a lot about the risky behaviors that
our kids engage in while under the
influence. She feels that the kids are
hurting because of these behaviors and
parents can help. Ms. Fenn realizes
that it is very difficult to call another
parent to ask about the supervision and
alcohol at a party, but it is imperative!
Every parent must do their due diligence. You can give a friendly offer to
go over and help out at the party. Yes,
it is legal for you as a parent to search
through kids’ bags when they come to
your house for a sleepover or party.
Ms. Fen had several hand-outs for
parents that give great advice. Please
check them out on the PTSA website:
Tips for Hosting an Alcohol-Free Party
What Parents Can Do When Your Teen
is Going to a Party
Refusal Skills for Teens
I hope you take the time to look up
the Social Host website < www.
socialhostliability.org >, print out the
hand-outs for your family to review,
and share this information with your
friends.
Lexington High School Newsletter
June 2012
Guidance and Counseling
Notes from Guidance and Counseling
The guy who takes a chance, who walks the line between the known and the unknown, who is
unafraid of failure, will succeed. – Gordon Parks, (1912-2006) Photographer thekindergartencorral.blogspot.com
Best Wishes to Class of 2012
From the Guidance and Counseling Department to you, the
graduating Class of 2012, we wish you all the best as you
enter the next phase of your lives. Please be sure to complete the Graduation Survey and inform Ms. Hurley, the
Registrar, where to send your final transcripts, if necessary.
Suggestions on how your children might enrich
their summer: THEY MIGHT . . .
• Play outside to reap the benefits of a healthy mind and
body (you will also sleep better).
• Continue reading to increase your vocabulary.
• Find employment or an Internship to gain valuable work
experience or save money.
• Participate in a meaningful community service opportunity.
• Academic summer programs to improve skills in areas of
weakness, or to study an area in more depth.
• Job Shadow to learn more about a variety of careers.
• Visit colleges to get a sense of what they are like, what the expectations are, and how it may help them to achieve their goals.
Guidance Office Summer Hours
The Guidance and Counseling office will be staffed during the summer. However, counselors will NOT be back in
the office until mid-August. Please do not leave a message
on individual counselor’s voice mailboxes. The Registrar’s
office will be open on a reduced schedule, to be posted in
room #152. Inquiries about office hours may be directed
to the main office. New student registration information is
available on our website.
Student Schedules
Students and parents may access course schedules for the
2012-2013 academic year, via the student portal Aspen, in
mid-August. Additional information and instructions will be
provided at that time.
Changes in the Counseling Department
On Friday, January 27, 2012, Dr. Ash appointed Ms. Valerie
Viscosi as the new K-12 Director of Guidance.
Ms. Viscosi comes to Lexington from the Methuen Public
Schools where she has served as Director of Guidance for
pre-Kindergarten through grade 12 for the past five years
7
and as a high school guidance counselor for seven years
prior to her assuming the position of director. She begins
her tenure in Lexington Public Schools on July 1.
Ms. Tessa Clare was also appointed by Dr. Ash, in March,
as the new .5 Assistant Director of Guidance. Ms. Clare has
served as a guidance counselor at the Jonas Clarke Middle
School since September 2007. She also currently serves as
the 6-8 Guidance Chair for both middle schools.
I will be returning to the role of full-time counselor and look
forward to resuming my coaching responsibilities with the
LHS track & field teams. It has been an honor to serve as the
chair of the department for the past seven years.
Ms. Alison Bennett has been granted a voluntary transfer
from LHS to the Jonas Clarke Middle School, at the beginning of the 2012-2013 academic year. Ms. Bennett has been
a valued member of the high school counseling department
for eight years. I wish to thank her for her contributions to
the High School community.
Preliminary College Acceptance Results
With about 55% of the students and colleges reporting we
are just beginning to look at how our students did in the application process. Despite the continued record numbers of
applications for admission nationwide, LHS students continue to find acceptance at a variety of schools (approximately
30.5%). Openings still remain for qualified students at some
colleges across the country. See your child’s guidance counselor for more information or go to < www.nacacnet.org/
space >. The counseling department will continue to review
information as it becomes available.
College Name
*LHS ‘12 Acceptances
Ivy League
Barron’s Most Competitive
MA state colleges
% of all matriculations
12%
20%
40%
40% are to MA colleges
13% are to NY colleges
*Preliminary results ONLY
TO ALL OF OUR STUDENTS AND PARENTS, HAVE A
SAFE AND WONDERFUL SUMMER!
– Lester R. Eggleston, Jr.
Director of Guidance and Counseling
Lexington High School Newsletter
Lexington Education Foundation
The STARs Are Out
Thinking about end-of-year teachers’ gifts? Consider purchasing an LEF STAR (Staff Teacher Appreciation and Recognition) Award certificate to thank and honor that special individual teacher or group of educators. STAR Awards are convenient,
meaningful, and teachers love them! STAR Awards are handsome
certificates that include your name and an optional personal
message. Individual Awards are $25 and Team or Group Awards
(such as middle school teams or school administration staff) are
$50. When you buy a STAR Certificate, your donation helps
fund Lexington Education Foundation’s comprehensive grants
program. Ordering is easy! Look for the yellow STAR Award
Certificate order form in your child’s backpack, a STAR letter in
your home mailbox, or go to www.lexedfoundation.org. Questions? Call the LEF office at (781-372-3288). Thank you for supporting the Lexington Public Schools! The Lexington Education
Foundation is not affiliated with the Lexington Public Schools.
June 2012
Underclass Final Exam Schedule
Monday
11
Tuesday
12
Wednesday
13
Thursday
14
Friday
13
14
Final exam review day - B2, D2, F2, H1
Blocks
Finals: 8:30-10:30 am - Social Studies
and 12 noon-2 pm - Math
Final exam: 8:30-10:30 am - Foreign
Language
12 noon-2pm optional (drop in) review
15Finals: 8:30-10:30 - Science
Monday
Final exam review day - A1, C1, E1, G1
Blocks
18
and 12 noon-2pm - English
Conflict and Makeup exams
WEEKLY PARENT DISCUSSION
MIAA Student-Athlete Community
Service/Citizenship Awards
The following four LHS student-athletes have been awarded MIAA Student-Athlete Community Service/Citizenship
Awards for their contributions as students, athletes and community servants! They took part in the awards ceremony at
Northeastern University in April.
Ali Boreiko - Soccer, Indoor and Outdoor Track
Emily Foley - Soccer, Basketball, Lacrosse
Gavin Lewis - Boys Soccer, Lacrosse
Brian Delgreco - Golf, Ice Hockey, Boys Volleyball
Lexington Community Education
Earn Community Service Credit with
Lexington Community Education
High School students, entering sophomore, junior or
senior year in September, may earn COMMUNITY
SERVICE CREDIT this summer as aides in the summer
Lexplorations program. The program runs for five weeks
from July 2 through August 3. The hours are 9 a.m. to 3
p.m. Volunteers must commit to a minimum of one full
week. Classes will be held at Fiske Elementary School
and Lexington High School, and we especially need aides
at the Fiske School location. If you are interested in
volunteering, please stop by the Lexington Community
Education office in the LHS main office to pick up an aide
application. Questions? Please call LCE (781-862-8043).
Lexington Community Education
8
7:45 to 8:45 a.m. every Thursday
in the Guidance Conference Room
Drop in and share in the circle discussion!
Social Studies Department
LHS Race, Gender, and Human Behavior
Students Visit Freshmen Classes to Talk
About Stereotypes
On Friday, May 18, 2012 some freshmen World History
and English teachers welcomed seniors and juniors from
Race, Gender, and Human Behavior classes to talk about
stereotypes. The idea, called Stereotypes Awareness Day,
was generated from two students, seniors Malik Alfred
and Princelee Morelus. Malik and Princelee were inspired
by the controversial Travyon Martin case and the conversations surrounding it to do something to enact positive
change in the school community. Working with Lindsay
Banks in the Social Studies Department, they planned a
day where students could have open conversations about
stereotypes that exist about every different identity group
and the impact they can have.
On May 18, 34 students led activities and discussions
about stereotypes. They helped other students to share personal experiences around stereotypes with each other as a
learning opportunity for all. The students worked hard to plan
fun activities and the freshmen were engaged and willing to
tackle tough topics. All participants should feel very proud of
their contributions to making the day a success!
Lexington High School Newsletter
June 2012
Social Studies Department
Colonial Dames Essay National Winner
I’d like to congratulate Larry David’s
students for their recent success in the
Colonial Dames Essay Contest. One
student won the national contest and
three students were state finalists.
Michal Clayton has won a scholarship to a week-long program in Washington, D.C. by writing an outstanding essay in a nationwide contest
sponsored by the National Society
of the Colonial Dames of America
(NSCDA). In June, she will join other
high school students from around the
country to meet with government leaders and diplomats, tour monuments,
museums, and historic sites, and participate in a model congress organized
by the Washington Workshops Foundation. At a reception at its historic
Beacon Hill headquarters on May
17, the Massachusetts Society of the
National Society of Colonial Dames of
America congratulated her.
The NSCDA is a women’s organization based on lineal descent from
those who founded our country before
the American Revolution. The society
preserves objects and buildings from
America’s colonial past, provides
education about our nation’s history,
and nurtures patriotism and good
citizenship.
This year’s essay topic: Discuss the
relevance today of Abraham Lincoln’s statement, “a house divided
cannot stand.”
In addition to the national winner,
Lexington High School also had three
State finalists of the NSCDA Congressional Seminar Essay Contest:
Netana Markovitz, Anna Yang and
Ryan Zhang.
Congratulations to Mr. David and his
students!
– Rob Collins
LHS Sophomores
Participate in Human
Rights Day
Again this year, the Tenth-Grade
World History II team hosted Human Rights Day. On Friday May
25, all sophomores participated in
an in-school field trip. The students
watched the movie Hotel Rwanda,
and then a survivor of the Rwandan
Genocide, Ernest Rugwizangoga,
came to speak and share his experiences. We have found that this is
always a very powerful learning
experience for students and this year
was no different. Students were able
to learn a lot from the day and many
expressed feeling moved by the
event.
Debate News
T
Lincoln Douglas Debate National Championship
his has been a pretty exceptional year for Lexington’s debate
team, and recently it was capped with
winning a national championship in
Lincoln Douglas (LD) debate!
The Tournament of Champions is
the most elite competition in high
school debate. Only 72 entries are
permitted in Policy and 84 in LD.
Students qualify throughout the year
by performing well at some of the
hardest tournaments in the nation. For
many students, qualifying alone is the
single biggest achievement of their
high school debate career.
This year Lexington qualified one
9
policy team (seniors Alex Yared and
Bennett Clifford) and four LD debaters (senior Noah Star and juniors
Adam Hoffman, Jerry Chen and Paul
Zhou).
Our policy team had an exceptional performance, going 6-1 in the preliminary
debates and beating some of the best
teams in the competition to get there.
They bowed out in the first elimination
round to a tough team from Chicago.
Noah Star also went 6-1 through preliminary rounds, was named third best
speaker overall, and beat opponents
from exceptional schools in Chicago,
Dallas, New York and California en
route to winning the tournament.
It is the first time Lexington High
School has won the Tournament of
Champions in LD debate. Lexington
now is the only school to have won
all three debate divisions (Policy, LD
and Public Forum) in the history of
the tournament.
The win capped off an extraordinary
season for the LHS debate team. We
won our 36th state championship in a
row, as well was winning multiple national invitationals, including tournaments at the Greenhill School (TX),
the Bronx High School of Science
(NY), and the Harvard Round Robin.
Lexington High School Newsletter
June 2012
PTSA News
LHS/PTSA Announces Newly Elected PTSA
Officers and Site Council Parent Rep. for 2012-13
Co-President........................... Lori Tambone
Co-President...............................Deb Lapides
Co-Vice President....................Jen Vogelzang
Co-Vice President....................... Deb Rourke
Co-Vice President...............Margaret Carlson
Executive Secretary..................... Allie Bruce
Recording Secretary................Mary Heveran
Treasurer..............................Bhavani Tirupati
Site Council Parent Representative (three year term
beginning 2012-13)..................... Kim Effron
Join the LHS/PTSA
J
oining the PTSA is one of the best ways you can be
engaged in your child’s high school education. The Student
Directory gives contact information for staff, students and
families and is available to all LHS/PTSA members.
Through your support, the LHS PTSA provides:
• Grants for Teachers
• Library Donation
• Student Financial Aid and Scholarships
• Parent Forums and Speakers
• Campus Landscaping
• Donation to each Grade
• Donation to All Night Graduation Party
• Department Stipend
• Newsletter (9/year)
• LHS Student Directory
• Staff Appreciation Luncheons
And more . . .
We do not conduct any schoolwide fundraising and depend
entirely on family membership dues and additional donations for our activities. The PTSA membership of $22 supports all these worthy causes.
You can join the PTSA online and pay for membership using
a credit card AND submit your directory information by going to < http://lhsdirectory.heroku.com/form/ >. If you prefer
to pay by check, you can go to the Lexington High School
PTSA website < https://sites.google.com/site/lexingtonhighptsa/ > and from there download the PTSA Membership
Directory Form. Thank you for supporting the LHS/PTSA.
10
Stop & Shop A+ Rewards
Program Earns $3,272 for LHS
W
e are pleased to announce that as a result of 246
parents, residents and teachers in Lexington who
designated their Stop & Shop card for Lexington High
School in the Stop & Shop A+ Rewards Program Lexington
High School will be receiving a check from Stop & Shop
in the amount of $3,272. The program ran from October to
March.
Once the donation is voted by School Committee for the
LHS gift account, it has been proposed that these funds be
used by the LHS Landscaping committee to continue to do
the great work that they do in keeping the grounds beautiful
for those who attend or teach here at LHS, as well as for the
entire community who views and or uses the facility.
Please remember that this is an annual program and even
though you designated your card last year you will need to
register your card again in the fall in order to keep earning
funds for LHS. Watch for information on signing up again
for this program in September.
All Lexington schools together earned $14,707 in this
program, a fairly decent share of the $2.5 million that Stop
& Shop gave away, but next year we hope to get an even
greater share by getting more families, teachers, neighbors,
grandparents, aunts . . . to register their cards for LHS!
8th-Grade Parent Step-Up
Night Hosted by the PTSA
Date: Tuesday, June 5
Time: 7:00 – 8:30 pm
Location: LHS Science Lecture Hall
Attention Eighth-Grade Parents: Come to LHS Parents
Step-Up Night. The Lexington High School PTSA invites
all current eighth-grade parents to a Parents Step-Up Night
on Tuesday, June 5, 7:00-8:30 p.m. in the Science Lecture Hall at LHS. Members of the PTSA will give a brief
introduction, answer questions from parents and lead tours
of the high school for parents only. No LHS administrators will be present for this event. Hear what life is like at
LHS from a parent’s perspective and get to know your way
around the High School. All parents of incoming freshmen
are welcome.
Lexington High School Newsletter
June 2012
Health Office
“Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass under trees on a summer’s day,
listening to the murmur of the water, or watching the clouds float across the sky,
is by no means a waste of time.” ~ Sir John Lubbock
Class of 2016
We are looking forward to the arrival of the Class of 2016
in August. Please have your student stop by the nurse’s office to say hello. Illness is by no means the only reason for
a visit to see the nurse.
As we begin to file away your student’s medical records
from Diamond and Clarke Schools, we would like to
remind students and parents to send us a current physical
examination report. All incoming ninth graders, new
students, and those participating in sports must have
a current physical examination on file in the nurse’s
office. Please do not send in a duplicate if a report has
already been sent to your middle school nurse.
End-of-Year Medication Pick Up
If your student has a medication in the nurse’s office, including over-the-counter medicines, please have your teen
stop by and pick it up. We are required by the Department of Public Health to discard all medications remaining in the clinic after the end of the day on June 19.
Before school is out for the summer, all parents of students
with life-threatening allergies will receive a packet in the mail
that must be completed by parents and the students’ health care
provider. These packets must be completed and turned into the
LHS nurse’s office during the first week of school in the fall.
Medication Guidelines for 2012-2013
New medication permission forms along with the medication must be turned into the nurse’s office during the first
week of the 2012-2013 school year. This will enable us to
provide your child with the healthcare that he/she requires
and deserves.
Students taking medications other than acetaminophen
and ibuprofen must submit a medication permission form
which has been completed and signed by the student’s
health care provider and parent/guardian. The medication
must be provided in its original prescription bottle or overthe-counter container.
For short-term medications such as antibiotics, the prescription bottle with the pharmacy label can be accepted
as the provider’s medication permission form. A written
11
signature approving the administration of the medication
is, however, required from the student’s parent/guardian.
At the High School, acetaminophen and ibuprofen may be
given to a student on a one-time basis with verbal permission from the student’s parent/guardian. Subsequent
administration of these medications, however, requires a
signed parent/guardian permission form. These permission forms can be obtained from the LPS website under
“schools” and then “forms and publications.”
Students using inhalers, Epipens for life-threatening allergies, or medications other than acetaminophen or ibuprofen, must provide the medications and submit a medication
permission form signed by the student’s physician and
parent/guardian. Student’s needing Epipens or inhalers
may carry them on their person as long as a doctor’s order
allowing this is on file in the nurse’s clinic.
Please contact the nurse’s office with any questions.
Summer Office Hours
The nursing office will be closed for the summer and
reopen for limited hours at the end of August to process
paperwork. Should you have any questions about your student, please feel free to contact us at that time. All health
forms, including medication permission forms, are available online at the LPS website.
We wish you a relaxing and enjoyable summer.
Janet Foley, RN, ext. 1012
Susan Kaftan, RN, ext. 1013
Cheryl Johnson, RN, ext. 1014
Phone: 781-861-2320
Confidential Fax: 781-861-2611
Lexington High School Newsletter
June 2012
Foreign Language Department
Annual Foreign Language Awards
T
he Annual Foreign Language
Awards Night was held Thursday, May 17 in the Lexington
High School auditorium. Three hundred eighty nine students received 444
awards. Fifty-five students received
multiple awards with two students
receiving four awards.
This year there were eight very important awards that were not listed in the
program but deserve special attention:
Richard Oliviera Soens (Mandarin)
was nominated by his teacher, Lili
Pan, for the Massachusetts Foreign
Language Association Past Presidents
Award. Richard was one of four students
statewide to receive this honor. This is
the first time in 11 years that one of our
students has received this award.
Jonathan Tidor (Latin) achieved a per-
fect score on the 2012 National Latin
Exam. Only 1,111 students out of the
136,000 who participated worldwide
attained this distinction.
Abby Heingartner (Latin) received the
Special Book Award for winning a gold
medal in Latin for the past four years.
first experience with this type of test as
there is no National Exam in German 1.
the National Ancient Greek Exam. They
have been working with Maureen Haviland on an Independent Study.
scores on the National French Exam.
There were only 16 students in Eastern
MA and 26 nationally who received
perfect scores.
Isabelle Engelberg and Elizabeth Kuszmaul (Greek) received High Honors on
Nicholas James, Rebecca Lane and
David Atkins (Spanish) received the
highest scores in the state on all parts
of the National Spanish Exam. They
have been invited to attend a very special ceremony and dinner next week at
Regis College.
Anna Yang (Italian) received a perfect
score on the Italian National Exam.
This exam was so difficult that native
speakers struggled to get a high score.
Anna scored #1 out of 1,357 students.
Chi Yun Son (German) received a
perfect score on the National German
Exam. She placed first in the chapter
where 269 students completed this difficult test. For the German II students
the National German Exam is their very
Charles Coburn and Meena
Chakraborty (French) received perfect
Eight students received Departmental
Awards:
Danielle Varallo received the Italian
Consulate’s Scholarship Award for
excellence in the study of Italian.
Richard Oliveira Soens received the
Chinese American Association of Lexington Scholarship for excellence in the
study of Mandarin.
Kristin Tonsis Hsieh, Josh Pickar, Richard Oliviera Soens, Elise Tiani and Jo
Troll received the Nicholas Barnett
Award for excellence in the study of
foreign languages.
Michael Pimentel received the Spanish
Club Leadership Award.
PTSA continued from p. 3
their appreciation for each and every
member of the PTSA because without
the members of the PTSA this event
wouldn’t be possible.
Thank you to those on the GRANT
REVIEW COMMITTEE including CoChairs Ana Karchmer, and June Hsiao.
The members are Ilene Benghiat, Anne
Leary, Maggie Pax, Cynthia Piltch,
and Kelly Tzannes.
Huge thanks to our 2012 NOMINATING COMMITTEE consisting of PTSA
members Lesley Benson (Chair),
Alice Meade, and Ann Redmon who
worked together this spring to ensure
that we have an excellent leadership
12
team for the PTSA for next year. The
Nominating Committee makes sure
that our PTSA follows the bylaws of
the State PTA, and that it is a process
which welcomes all PTSA members to
engage in. The committee presented a
full slate of highly qualified candidates
to the members for vote at the PTSA
Forum on March 23. See page 10 for
the results of the election.
Lastly, we want to thank Natalie
Cohen for her leadership over the past
four years. We have enjoyed being
in partnership with her and her office
staff with the best interest of all students and staff at LHS. We’ll miss her
greatly! We remember all the contributions that she made for our children,
including how to make a big school
feel smaller, and being a principal who
listened to what students had to say.
Parents, please join us for a Farewell
Coffee for Natalie on Friday, June 8,
8-9 a.m. in Commons II.
Sincerely,
The 2011-12 LHS/PTSA Board
Co-Presidents Sharon Kendall and
Lori Tambone; Vice Presidents Deb
Lapides, Mary Ellen Goodwin, and
Katie Nill; Secretaries Mary Heveran
and Jen Vogelzang; and Treasurer
Bhavani Tirupati
Lexington High School Newsletter
June 2012
Musket Awards
LHS YEARBOOK
C
ongratulations to the Musket staff on an excellent
showing at the New England Scholastic Press Association’s annual conference at Boston University!
The Musket staff was awarded superior achievement in
scholastic editing and publishing for Class I. In addition,
NESPA recognized five students for special achievement:
Review:
Dan Bernstein:
Hoda Yehia:
Photo:
Thomas Marge:
“A Slice of Lexington: Four local pizzerias reviewed”
“New Middle Eastern restaurant looks to
be a sizzlin’ success”
“Ultimate Frisbee”
Artwork/Cartoon:
Andrew Goulet: “Backpacks”
Anna Rodman: “Pledge of Allegiance”
–Julie Kuo
Don’t be disappointed! There are a limited number of copies of the 2012 yearbook remaining. If you have not yet
ordered one, the time to do so is NOW. When we sell out,
there is no possibility of ordering additional copies. To order online, go to < http://yearbook.lexingtonma.org/order.
html >. The yearbook may also be ordered at school in the
Main Office or the Library. Please make checks payable
to Town of Lexington for $90.00. For more information,
contact Harriet Wallen in the Library.
2012 GRADUATION DVD
The 2012 LHS graduation ceremony will be taped by
LexMedia. A DVD of the ceremony will be produced by
LexMedia and will show all seniors receiving their diplomas and will also include all of the commencement speakers. This year the graduation DVD will be of HD quality.
Purchases may be made online and payments may be made
either by check or with a credit card. If you are interested
in purchasing this year’s graduation DVD, go to: < http://
www.lexmedia.org/order-dvds.html >.
It is still possible to order DVDs of graduation ceremonies
from previous years. If you have any questions, please
email Irene Dondley <irene@lexmedia.org> or call LexMedia at (781-862-5388).
SUBSCRIBE TO THE MUSKET
Are you informed about what is happening in your child’s school life? Do you want to know more about student news,
school sports and teenagers’ points of view? Find out by subscribing to The Musket, the LHS student-run newspaper, for just
$15 per year.
Send completed form and check ($15, payable to Town of Lexington/The Musket newspaper) to:
Send completed form and checks to:
Julie Kuo, The Musket adviser
Lexington High School
251 Waltham Street
Lexington, MA 02421
Please type or write clearly in pen.
Name:
_________________________________________________
Mailing Address: _________________________________________________
_________________________________Zip _____________
Contact: Email or phone: ___________________________________________
13
Lexington High School Newsletter
June 2012
Science Department
Visit the LHS science web page to find information for:
1.
Science summer school options
2.
Advanced Earth Science summer reading assignment
LHS Science Team News
NSB (National Science Bowl) took first place on April 30,
2012 at competition in Washington, D.C. Congratulations
to Julia Leung, Alan Zhou, Jonathan Tidor, Zaroug Jaleel,
Matthew Arbesfeld; and, to their coach Nick Gould, assistant coaches, Ryan Grams and Kelly Kilts. [see p. 15 for
more details]
NOSB (National Ocean Sciences Bowl) placed fourth
overall last month at competition in Baltimore MD. The
team was awarded first place in the Science Expert Briefing
(SEB) competition. Congratulations to Hyunyung Boo, Anubhav Jain, Julia Leung, Catherine Medlock, Matt Shorter,
and their coach, Dr. Sarah Damassa.
The Envirothon Team placed second at state competition
on May 17, 2012 in Uxbridge MA. Congratulations to team
members, Amy Zhang, Grace Ma, Brandon Nguyen, Shohini Stout, Allen Li, and their coach Steve Wilkins.
State & Intel Science Fair news
The following LHS students qualified to participate at the
2012 Massachusetts State Science Fair at MIT in Cambridge Massachusetts, May 4-5, 2012:
David Balaban
Surya Bhupatiraju
Eric Chew
Samuel Chin
Ben Donahue
Emily Hu
Ji Woong (Philip Jung)
Eugenia Kim
Austin Liou
Diana Mojahed
Garrett Parrish
Catherine Qin
Hao Shen
Mathew Simkovits
Elana Super
Veronica Wharton
Daniel Yin
14
Alan Bartels
Arman Bilge
Eric Chiang
Felix Chung
Anisa Haque
Alex Ioakimidis
Josh Kang
Andrew Lepore
Michael Mendelsohn
Manavi Nagai
Victor Porras
Lauren Ransohoff
Edward Shin
Kevin Song
Ben Tso
Brandon Wong
Results for the individual projects at the 2012
Massachusetts State Science Fair:
Arman Bilge
Diane Mojahed
Garrett Parrish
Daniel Yin
Josh Kang
Eugenia Kim
Lauren Ransahoff
Elana Super
Veronica Wharton
Edward Shin
1st place
1st place
1st place
1st place
2nd place
2nd place
2nd place
3rd place
3rd place
Honorable mention
Results for team projects:
Surya Bhupatiraju & Hao Shen
1st place
Michael Mendelsohn & Ji Woong
1st place
Eric Chew, Eric Chiang & Felix Chung 2nd place
Catherine Qin & Manavi Nagai
2nd place
Ben Donahue & Alan Bartels
2nd place
Kevin Song, Ben Tso, Mathew Simkovits
3rd place
Victor Porras & Alex Ioakimidis
3rd place
Austin Liou & Brandon Wong
Hon. mention
Samuel Chin & Andrew Lepore
Hon. mention
Visit www.massscifair.com for more detailed information.
8
Results for the Intel Science Fair May 13-18, 2012
All three of our students who attended the International science and Engineering fair (ISEF) held in Pittsburgh have
received awards in their respective categories.
Emily Hu
- third-place award for Behavioral & Social Science
Surya Bhupatiraju, Hao Shen
- fourth-place award for Animal Science
Visit www.intel.com for more detailed information.
Congratulations to the students, teachers, and coaches
whose hard work has been rewarded and is reflected in
these impressive results. Well done!
Lexington High School Newsletter
Science Department
Science Bowl
Highlights
T
he national science bowl is the
largest team science competition for high school students
in the country. It was started by the
Federal Government’s Department of
Energy in 1991 in order to encourage
America’s youth to pursue careers
in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. In 2002, the
Department of Energy started the
middle school division of the bowl.
So now both middle and high school
students compete in this event every
year. Over 13,000 high school and
5,000 middle school students participate each year.
It begins each January with 69 regional high school and 44 regional
middle school competitions across
the country. The winner of each
regional competition is then invited
to Washington, D.C. for five days to
participate in various events, including science lectures, expositions, and
tours of the monuments and museums
of D.C., all culminating in the competition on the last two days.
The competition has a Jeopardy-like
lockout buzzer question and answer
format with questions in Biology,
Earth and Space Science, Energy,
Chemistry, Mathematics and Physics.
Two teams of four students and one
alternate compete in two, ten minute
rounds.
The competition began on Sunday
with the round robin portion in which
each of the 69 winning regional teams
was randomly placed into eight divisions. Each team played every other
team in its division once and at the
end of the round robin Lexington had
seven wins and one loss, advancing
us to the double elimination competition. The top two teams from each
division advanced to the double
15
June 2012
elimination competition that began
Sunday evening. During our double
elimination rounds, we were undefeated and were seeded first going into the
final rounds at the National Building
museum the next day. At this point, we
could place no less than second.
On Monday morning, we faced the
only team that had beaten us in the
round robin competition, North
Hollywood High School, a magnet
science school from California. We
needed just one win, whereas they
needed two to win it. They beat us by
three questions in the first match 10674, and we were now in a must-win
scenario. We jumped out to an early
lead in the first half, 64-26, and never
looked back in the second half, more
than doubling their score 120-56 and
sealing the victory.
–Nicholas Gould
Mathematics Department
Robotics Team
Competes in World
Championships
L
exington High School’s robotics team, 2 Bits and a Byte,
recently participated in the
FIRST World Championship in St.
Louis, MO. A member of the FTC
or FIRST Tech Challenge Division,
the team advanced to the event by
winning the Massachusetts State
Championships in only its second full
season of competition. Our robot,
“The Little Robot that CDR,” went
7-1 through two days of qualifying
matches and finished as the #3 seed
in our 64-team bracket of the tournament. After selecting two alliance
partners for the semi-finals, we lost
the best two out of three to the #2
seeded team in some very closely
contested matches. Even closer than
the score indicated, as our partners
suggested, we really lost due to some
technical issues, not because we did
not have a sound strategy. The closing ceremonies presented our team
with another reason to celebrate, as
we were one of three finalists for the
PTC Design Award, which is awarded
for incorporation of industrial design.
Success can be measured on many
levels. Yes, we placed well in the
tournament and were nominated for
an award. Just advancing to the World
Championships would have been a
phenomenal achievement, but my favorite story from the event is this one:
The team’s first match of the tournament was played against a team that
did not have an alliance partner. They
did not show up, just one robot versus
our two. We fairly easily won the
match and wondered how something
like this could occur. Soon afterwards, while our team was preparing
for the next match, we passed by the
missing team. He (yes, a one-person
team) was being told, almost scolded
by one of the FIRST Admin staff that
he had missed his first match, and
was about to miss his second if he did
not get going to the fields. There were
no mentors or teammates with him,
just a robot frame with only three
wheels, missing the fourth. Motors
not connected to anything, and he
was struggling to understand how to
program the robot, having just flown
in from Saudi Arabia. We spoke to the
FIRST representative and asked if our
team could help him. We all agreed
that we clearly must. The FIRST representative was delighted at our offer
and we had 5+ students who went
to help him build a robot. Within a
few hours they had finished the build
and programming such that when his
teammate and mentor finally arrived,
they were able to go to the field and
compete. The students were delighted
to help him, and the smile on his face
when he was out there driving his
robot around was priceless.
–Jeff Harris
Lexington High School Newsletter
June 2012
Student Election Results
School Committee Representative
Sam Alpert
Student-Faculty Senate
Class of 2013
David Atkins
Alan Bartels
Benjamin Brown
Jerry Chen
Akshay Daftardar
Dana Dimodica
Emily Hu
Jesse Kao
Lisa Lee
Catherine Qin
Class of 2014
Vivien Chen
Brian Chirn
Erin Hanson
Ethan Isaacson
Alex Lee
Sam Lehn
Daniel Murphy
Kurt Pfrommer
Catherine Sillari
Aren Torikian
Class of 2015
Joe Blumberg
Mark Cui
Mayukha Karnam
Eugene Kim
Jae Kim
Jongwon Kim
Ben Martell
Matthew Reynolds
May Zhou
Board of Appeals
Russell Gens ’13
Aditya Gopalan ’14
Ben Stix ’15
Class of 2013
Zach Strohmeyer, President
Manavi Nagai, Vice President
Shreya Thatai, Secretary
Katie Schmidt, Treasurer
Class of 2014
Jonah Watt, President
Meaghan Gallagher, Vice President
Maya Strod, Secretary
Daniel Casey, Treasurer
Class of 2015
Dan Alessandro, President
James Yu, Vice President
Noah Michelson, Secretary
Caroline Berger, Treasurer
Class Council
Class of 2013
Matthew Almeida
Garni Aroyan
Rose Arslanian
Maia Borensztein
Naina Chipalkatti
Kristen Hernandez
Ellen Meyers
Alexa Pedulla
Kate Powers
Bridget Reynolds
Matti Schreibman
Alexander Sheena
Emmy Wheaton
Bri Wilson
Jamie Yang
Stephanie Yin
Class of 2014
Matt Burke
Paige Campbell
Sara Fopiano
Ayesha Harisinghani
Emily Hom
Clovis Jaillet
Jillian Jandl
Gina Jin
Nora Landers
Muriel Lavallee
Priscilla Lee
Drew Lepore
Lauren Lundahl
Casey Michon
Elana Selitsky
Alice Tan
Class of 2015
Zelda Bank
Tolga Bozkaya
Caroline Carter
Lyle Cheatham
Emily Chuang
Makeda Daniel
Jesse Goodman
Michelle Heyang
Alexis Maimonis
Katie Reilly
Drew Rose
Vanessa Savage
Claudia Sun
Grace Vogelzang
Jayne Vogelzang
May Zhou
School Council Representative
Jessica Zhu’14 (2-year term)
Cafeteria Advisory Board
Dan Bernstein ’13
Geneva Kropper ’13
Arnold Joseph ’14
Henry Muter ’14
Tevin Li ’15
Tim Weeks ’15
Mathematics teacher Jim Williams has been honored by the MIT Club of Boston Annual
Meeting with an Inspirational Teacher award this spring at the Broad Institute of MIT.
Congratulations, Jim! It is richly deserved. We are proud of you.
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Lexington High School Newsletter
June 2012
National Honor Society
Congratulations Class of 2012 National Honor Society Members
F
rom donating their blood, to volunteering with Special Olympics, to performing in a schoolwide talent show in order to raise money for homeless shelters, the following seniors have
gone above and beyond. Each National Honor Society member has contributed around 40 hours of
community service, in addition to school-mandated hours, by participating in a variety of meaningful service projects to give back to their community. The students were chosen based on their
excellence in scholarship, leadership qualities, dedication to community service, and character. The
Lexington High School chapter of National Honor Society congratulates all the NHS members of
the graduating class of 2012!
Eliza Abdu-Glass
Rachael Amos
Matthew Arbesfeld
Hanna Atia
Stephanie Atwood
Jonah Bader
Carina Belvin
Anna Berman
Rachel Bodony
Hyun Yung Boo
Alison Boreiko
Shannon Boudett
Joshua Brosnan
Allison Bukys
Kate Burke
Taylor Campbell
Sean Chan Chan
Carolyn Chang
Maya Cherayil
Ziv Cohen
Emma Corcoran
Gabriela Cortez
Taher Dahleh
Elizabeth Day
Benjamin Edelstein
Brian Evans
Sara Feldman
Emily Foley
Allison Forlenza
Sarah Foster
James Fraser
Jeremy Fung
Jenna Grady
Chandler Gregg
Matthew Gschwend
Dena Guo
Emma Hede-Brierley
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Abigail Heingartner
MayLin Heuchling
Kristin Hsieh
Colleen Hughes
Marcos Igreja
Siffat Islam
Megan Iverson
Susan Jacob
Anubhav Jain
Samantha Jandl
Luke Johnson
Judith Kan
Louisa Kane
Varsha Kannan
Victoria Kendall
Hannah Keohane
Sarah Kimball
Jamie Kishimoto
Rachel Krupski
Allison Lau
Julia Leung
Gavin Lewis
Mina Li
Kathleen Li
Jason Li
Debra Liebeskind
Jenny Liu
Danielle Livneh
Michael Loughlin
Douglass Luo
Cody Ma
Rie Maeda
Liora Mael
Natalie Martell
Michela Masson
Shannon McCarthy
Moira McCavana
Rebecca McClements
Emma Mechling
Nandini Mehta
Corey Michon
Zoe Miller
Diana Mojahed
Valerie Morrill
Gregory Muir
Samoni Nag
Caroline Neumann
Emma Nichols
Alice Oliveira Soens
Rich Oliveira Soens
Jacqueline Oram
Hannah Ornatowski
Casey Patch
Joshua Pickar
Kianna Pirooz
Aaron Plosker
Ramya Ramakrishna
Mallika Rangan
Lauren Ransohoff
Shayna Rubenstein
Zachary Sabin
Avdeep Sahi
Alaina Salusti
Ava Sanayei
Arianna Sandeen
Dan Schlosser
Matthew Schwartz
Matt Smoot
Abigail Soule
Noah Star
Alison Stein
Andrew Swanson
Krista Swanson
Shen Tang
Claudia Tate
Kendra Tiani
Elise Tiani
Benjamin Tidor
Alison Tippett
Emily Tso
Norma Tumennasan
Bronwyn Wada-Gill
Emily Walker
Nicole Walsh
Tova Weinronk
Olivia Wendel
Adam Whiteley
Laura Whiteley
Kennety Wong Labow
Zoe Wood
Joe Xu
Alexander Yared
Alex Yin
Sijia Zhang
Amy Zhang
Helen Zitkovsky
Lexington High School Newsletter
June 2012
PTSA Forum - May 23, 2012 with Laura Lasa
Time with Laura Lasa,
New Principal of LHS
by Mary Heveran, PTSA Secretary
The PTSA sponsored a forum on May
23 so that parents would have the opportunity to spend some time getting
to know the new Principal of LHS,
Laura Lasa. Ms. Lasa jumped right
in by spending 1.5 hours answering
questions from parents. I’ll try to share
with you some of the highlights of the
discussion from my perspective.
One parent asked Ms. Lasa to share
the things that she feels are working
well at LHS as well as her concerns.
She listed several things that are
working well: the community is truly
invested in education; the achievements of LHS students are amazing;
student survey indicates that we are
beginning to reduce stress for students;
and schoolwide prevention programs
have been very successful. She also
expressed some of her concerns:
perfection is not a reasonable standard
for our students, and it creates a lot
of stress; substance use and abuse is
on the rise at LHS and needs to be
addressed by the entire Lexington
community (students, parents, school
and police). She also stated that there
is a social stress on the students to stay
plugged in all the time and keep up
with their friends through facebook
and other social media.
Another parent explained that her
child is frustrated because he/she
does not feel challenged in a Level 1
class but is not ready for an AP class.
In many cases, nothing is offered in
between the two. Ms. Lasa hopes we
get to the point where students, parents
and teachers can have an honest conversation about why the student does
not feel challenged and define what it
means to be “challenged.”
Ms. Lasa was asked what she thought
were the most common rumors that
circulate around the High School. She
18
explained that what she hears from
Guidance is that there is a shift in the
college application process. It used
to be all about the variety of activities that you had on your applications;
academics, sports, community service,
etc. Now it seems the shift is to more
about following your passion. Another
myth about LHS is that the “other”
kids are using drugs. However, they
are finding substance abuse across all
groups of students at LHS.
One parent suggested that we have a
conversation within the LHS community about grades and discuss the question of “what are good grades?” Ms.
Lasa agreed that would be an excellent
topic to discuss, and she does put trust
in the trained professional in the classroom to determine the grades. She also
said that the introduction of the Rubric
over the last several years has done
a lot to clarify what is expected of
students in the classroom.
The same parent also suggested that
we give more weight to community
service in addition to academics. Ms.
Lasa agreed and expressed her commitment to the extended homeroom
time when students can discuss school
and community citizenship through
programs offered by the Guidance
Department.
Another parent expressed her concern
that there is not enough information
coming home from the school administration. Ms. Lasa acknowledged
that this is a problem. She does feel
that it goes both ways and parents and
students need to stop and read what is
sent home, especially letters that come
in the mail. She wants parents to get in
the habit of checking the LHS website
for the latest information. They will do
their best to keep that up to date.
Ms. Lasa was asked by a parent what
she thought was her role as a Principal. She felt that her greatest skill was
her ability to be an active listener. She
hopes that when she leaves this role as
Student Artwork Needed
The LHS Student Directory team is
looking for original student art for the
2012-2013 directory. Publishing in
the student directory is a great way to
show off your talents to the LHS community or to supplement your portfolio
for college admissions. We will consider all submissions received by the
deadline of September 28 and try to
include as many drawings as possible
on the covers and body pages of the
directory. The students whose designs
are chosen for the front and back covers will receive two free copies of the
directory for their art portfolios and
personal use. The top ten submitters
will receive one free copy whether
their design is used or not. You can use
themes of communications, cell phones,
telephones, Lexington, school, friends,
or other. We welcome creativity!
Please use the following specifications: paper size: 8 1/2”x11”; drawing
size: 8”x10”; black and white, pen and
ink, or computer graphic drawings (no
charcoal or pencil).
Include the following text:
LHS Student Directory 2012-2013
Mail Submissions to:
LHS/PTSA Directory, 251 Waltham
St. Lexington, MA 02421
-oremail PDF Files to: Jeanne Hobbs
lhsartwork@gmail.com
Deadline: Friday, September 28, 2012
Principal, she will have given people
a voice, inspired students and faculty,
and have planted seeds and ideas to
run with.
On behalf of the PTSA, I want to
thank Ms. Lasa for spending so much
time and taking such great care in answering our questions. She really is an
active listener! We are looking forward
to a great year next year.