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Congratulations, Class of 2006
Celebrating
success now and in the future
JUNE 2006—On Friday, June 23,
2006, over 300 Middletown High School
students were awarded diplomas at an evening ceremony
held at Orange County Community College.
Graduation is a time for students to reflect upon
their achievements and high school experiences. It’s
also a time to celebrate success. From scholar
athletes to choir honors and academic successes,
Superintendent Dr. Kenneth Eastwood reminded seniors,
parents and the community of the high quality of
Middletown education in his address on Friday night.
As the Class of 2006 enters into a world outside of
high school—whether it be at college or in the
workplace—graduates can be confident that they have
gained the knowledge and skills to tackle almost any
situation said Dr. Eastwood.
Among students were 21 honor graduates including Peter
Baltera and Joseph Palazzo, who were selected by peers
to address the Class of 2006 at commencement this
year. Honor grads are determined by their rank in the
class at the end of the first semester of their senior
year said Ruth Campbell, Guidance Department Chair at
the high school. Students need to receive a specific
GPA to qualify for the honor.
FBLA chapter prepares seniors for business careers
JUNE 2006—From
participating in fundraising activities, to help
contribute money towards scholarships for graduating
seniors, to getting involved in community service
projects like the school's annual coat drive, the dog
walk for cancer held at Bear Mountain State Park in May,
and donating toiletries to local shelters for women and
children, the Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA)
chapter at MHS has had a busy year.
"This organization
opens up opportunities to its members by offering
conferences throughout the year with professional guest
speakers, career planning activities, and business
etiquette seminars," said Judi Power, FBLA advisor. "Our
most recent field trip was a backstage tour of NBC
Studios at Rockefeller Plaza to obtain more information
on careers in communications and TV production."
This year seven FBLA
seniors are moving on to college to pursue careers in
business and they may just have an edge over others because of their participation in the program.
"These students are
well prepared to continue on in college with a solid
base in business courses including Accounting, Business
Analysis, Computer Keyboarding, Marketing, Banking and
Credit, International Finance and Basic Economics," said
Power. "FBLA students attending a college or university
with a Phi Beta Lambda fraternity can also look forward
to automatically being welcomed into the fraternity as
the counterpart to their high school organization of
FBLA."
High schoolers
inducted into National Honors Society
MAY 2006—Middletown High School's
chapter of the National Honor Society (NHS) held their induction
on May 23, 2006, at Monhagen Middle School. Thirty-six new members
were inducted at the ceremony. Mr. Brinson, calculus teacher
at the school, served as the keynote speaker as did
Superintendent Dr. Kenneth Eastwood, and active NHS member
Lauren Jaroszewski.
A reception was held after
the ceremony for active members, graduating seniors and new
inductees and their families.
Drug
sweep conducted at high school—nothing
found
MAY 2006—A drug sweep was
conducted at Middletown High School on Wednesday, May 24,
2006. No
illegal substances were found in lockers or common
areas at the school. This is the second time
this school year that Middletown High School was the site of a drug sweep. In
mid-November 2005, K-9 units also searched the school
and found no illegal substances.
The sweeps are part of an ongoing effort by the
district to keep students and buildings safe.
Read
full story and see photos here.
Students
travel to Nashville and place on top at competition
APRIL 2006—MHS students, 64 in total,
traveled with choral director Gregory Bennett to
Nashville, Tennessee, recently to participate in the
Fiesta-Val Music Invitational and Competition.
"I am very pleased to
report that all four of the ensembles performed
extremely well," said Bennett. "The Chamber Singers,
Women's Chorale, and Men's Chorus all finished in
first place with Excellent ratings and the Pipers
finished in second place with a Superior rating."
Samantha Seminario,
of the women's chorale, received a Solo Award of
Achievement for her part in "Caresse Sur L'Ocean."
Joseph Palazzo also received a Solo Award of
Achievement for his percussion accompaniment on two
selections. All four ensembles accumulated a combined
total that awarded them with the Grand Champion Award,
which also comes with an Award of Distinction for the
director as well.
New house
principal joins MHS
MARCH 2006—Tanya Davis was appointed
as a Middletown High School house principal at the March
9, 2006, Board of Education meeting. She will interim house
principal Patricia Simmons.
Davis served as the Supervisor of the Social Studies
Department for the East Ramapo Central School District
for four years prior to coming to Middletown. She also
previously served as a social studies teacher in the
Newburgh Enlarged City School District.
Davis received her Bachelor’s degree in History from
Pace University and her Master’s degree in teaching from
Pace University as well. In addition, she holds a
Certificate of Advanced Study in Administration.
“I am honored to become a member of the MHS
administrative team,” said Davis. “I look forward to
working with the parents, staff, faculty, and students.”
Annual Coffee House night celebrates Woman's History
Month
MARCH 2006—The second
annual Coffee House night, entitled "A
Big Helping of Woman's History Month with a
Little Poetry on the Side," was held on March 24,
2006, at the
high school. MHS Drama Club members read play excerpts,
monologues and poetry in front of the packed crowd
sipping on coffee, tea and hot
chocolate. All proceeds from the night will benefit the National
Honor Society (NHS) to offset the costs of this year's
induction ceremony. A special thank you to all
those who participated and supported the event!
Students Run for Hope
MARCH 2006—On March 23, 2006, about 80 students on the Middletown
High School girls and boys varsity track teams
participated in the Run for Hope to benefit the American
Cancer Society.
Read more here.
Middletown
dropout rate significantly lower than reported—more
students staying to graduate
FEB. 2005—The dropout rate for
Middletown’s Class of 2005 was 11.9 percent—almost half
of the 22.1 percent reported by the
Times Herald Record
(THR). In addition, 22.1 percent (more than twice the
reported 10.3 percent) of students continued on past
June 2005 to receive their diplomas.
Read more here.
Coffee House
Concert raises over $700 for scholarship fund
FEB. 2005—On Friday, Feb. 24,
2005, at
the Westminster Hall at Webb-Horton Church, the Fine
Arts Department put on a concert featuring
music from the
Middletown Fine Art's faculty. Over $700 has
been raised to support the
John R. Brigham Memorial Music Scholarship. The
event was
produced by Ina Segnit
and directed by Fortune J. Esposito.
Student-athletes
make the grade
JAN. 2005—Several
Middletown High School athletic teams are making the grade again this year.
The boys cross country, girls swimming & diving, girls
soccer, and the girls tennis teams were all honored by
the Scholar Athlete Program for achieving a 90 minimum
grade point average. The program centers on a team
concept of academic achievement for varsity athletes.
Sponsored by the New York State Public High School
Athletic Association’s (NYSPHSAA), students are
recognized for academic excellence coupled with athletic
participation.
MHS students spend weekend in Rochester for All-State
Samantha Newmark and
MHS band director Mr. Austin at NYSSMA in December 2005. |
DEC. 2005—Five Middletown
High School students spent the first weekend of December
2005 in Rochester, NY, participating in the New York
State School Music Association’s (NYSSMA) All-State
Honors ensembles.
Students selected from MHS included: Justin Randolph
(All-State Mixed Chorus); Jessica Ruggles (All-State
Women’s Chorus); Peter Baltera (All-State Symphonic
Band); Samantha Newmark (All-State Symphonic Band) and;
Joseph Palazzo (All-State Symphonic Band).
“Thousands of students from throughout New York State
were considered for these All-State Honors ensembles,”
said Gregory Bennett, choral director. “These five
students are very hard working individuals. They are
indeed models of excellence for their peers and
undoubtedly represented themselves and our school to the
best of their abilities with their fellow honors
ensemble members in December. It was a great honor and
one that we know our entire school community will be
very proud of.”
The All-State ensembles performed on Dec. 3 and 4, 2005,
at the Eastman Kodak Theatre, on the campus of the
Eastman School of Music in Rochester.
Drug sweep
conducted at school—nothing found
NOV. 2005—Middletown High School was
the site of a drug sweep this November by
eleven police K-9 units from Orange, Sullivan, and
Westchester Counties. The building entered
lock-down/lock-out mode while officers led K-9 units
through the school searching lockers for approximately
45 minutes.
In accordance with the City of Middletown
Police Department, and Lt. Paul Rickard, the search was
conducted randomly and not in response to a tip or any
suspicions. No warning was given to
students,
staff or faculty.
Read more here. |
School
evacuated—false fire alarm
NOV. 2005—Middletown High School
was evacuated on Nov. 16, 2005, due to a
student falsely pulling a fire alarm. This was a prank
and no emergency was identified. The student was
apprehended while pulling the alarm and subsequently
arrested. The high school was evacuated as a precaution.
The instructional day continued following a
regularly scheduled dismissal at 2:20 p.m.
Letter to parents about
incidents at high school from Exec, Principal Dr. Larry
Ashley.
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High school
dismisses students early due to electrical emergency
OCT. 2005—On Wednesday, October 12,
2005, at approximately 8:30 a.m., a buried electrical
conduit was struck by excavating equipment resulting in
damage to the electrical panel behind the kitchen at MHS. The
incident was isolated to the kitchen area, and it was
determined that school could remain in session and there
was no immediate danger to the occupants of the
building. It was decided cold lunches would be served to
staff and students. At this time, electrical power
throughout the building remained in tact.
While trying to reenergize
the repaired panel, an electrical arc occurred at
approximately 1 p.m. in the main electrical service area
near the athletic office and electrical power was lost
throughout the building. At this time, students and
staff were evacuated from Middletown High School and the
Middletown Fire Department responded to the building.
Once on the scene, Middletown Fire Department Chief and
the executive principal determined the school cafeteria
and main lobby were safe, and students and staff were
escorted there while waiting for buses to take students
home. Parents were permitted to pick up students
following bus dismissal. All after school activities
scheduled at the high school were canceled.
Following student and
staff dismissal at the high school, the high school
administration met with fire and police emergency
personnel to review the incident and evacuation
procedures. High school administration will debrief
later in the afternoon with the Superintendent regarding
the events related to this incident at the high school. |
MHS senior recognized by NHRP
FALL 2005—Peter Baltera, a senior at
MHS, was honored by the College Board's National
Hispanic Recognition Program (NHRP) this fall. The
program, initiated in 1983, honors outstanding Hispanic
high school students for their academic success.
Each year the NHRP selects
approximately 3,300 of the highest scoring students from
a nationwide total of 124,000 high school juniors who
took the PSAT/NMSQT and designated themselves as
Hispanic. Students are honored with award certificates
and a CD-ROM is distributed to subscribing four-year
postsecondary institutions with the names of all
students selected by the NHRP. Although the College
Board is not able to provide a monetary award to these
students, being listed may give students an opportunity
to hear from colleges that are particularly interested
in communicating with prospective students of Hispanic
heritage. |
Students take
part in breast cancer awareness month
OCT. 2005—High schoolers in the
Middletown chapter of the National Honor Society
(NHS) promoted Breast Cancer Awareness month by walking for
the cause Oct. 16, 2005, at the Woodbury Common Premium Outlets
in Central Valley. Approximately 15 NHS students took
part in the walk, while the other 19 members solicited
donations according to NHS advisor Robin Geiger.
Students raised about $1,500. “We decided to
participate so we could help promote awareness for
breast cancer, and contribute to the cause in any way we
could,” said Cat-Tryna Grant, NHS Vice President.
The
group also promoted "Think Pink" at the school in
October 2005, encouraging students to wear something pink to
promote awareness for breast cancer. NHS members handed
out pink ribbons to students and posters, and
announcements were made reminding students to
participate in Breast Cancer Awareness month.
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Meet Charles Nyland
: School Resource Officer at MHS
SEPT. 2005—MHS welcomed
School Resource Officer Charles Nyland, a member of the
Middletown Police Department, earlier this school year. Officer
Nyland is a certified School Resource Officer,
a
member of the National Association of School Resource
Officers and a member of the City of Middletown Tactical
Response Team.
Officer Nyland works in the school
as a mediator and as
a liaison
between the school district and the Middletown Police
Department.
He also is responsible for reacting to and reporting any
crimes/incidents committed on school premises. Officer
Nyland is also teaching students about issues of
gang awareness, amendment rights, among other subjects.
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New athletic director
joins high school administration
SEPT. 2005—David Coates comes to Middletown as the new athletic
director after serving as a physical education teacher
and football coach at Cornwall Central School District.
Coates also served as the athletic director at
Ellenville schools for four years.
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This
page is maintained by Melissa
Cortellini, public information specialist, according to Web
publishing guidelines used by the Enlarged City School
District of Middletown. All rights reserved. This Web site was produced
by the
Capital Region BOCES Communications Service. © 2003 |
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