County Prep Theatre Arts Students Attend 3rd Annual Theatre Day

All of the Theatre Arts students from County Prep HS participated this year in the 3rd Annual Theatre Day. It was organized by the Hudson County Alliance of Teen Artists in partnership with Hoboken High School on Friday January 6th, 2017.  The students took part in a full day of theatre activities taught by professionals who are leading the field in theatre education.  They each chose two hands-on workshops.  Among the choices were, Improvisation with Ryan Huban, Unlocking the Language of Shakespeare with Carlyle Owens, Acting Techniques with Kyle Fabel, and Hands-On Make-Up with Brandalyn Fulton.  The Improvisation workshop was led by Ryan Huban, founder of Howdy Stranger, and offered a wide variety of foundation and advanced improvisation workshops. Utilizing interactive games and exercises, the workshop emphasized teamwork, communication, creativity, and confidence. The Acting Techniques workshop, taught by Kyle Fabel, a core faculty member for The American Academy of Dramatic Arts, focused on the Viewpoints technique, and worked on living moment-to-moment and responding truthfully to a scene partner’s behavior. In this workshop actors get out of their heads and start working from instinct, gaining access to truthful, dynamic behavior and authentic emotional responses. The Shakespeare’s workshop was led by Carlyle Owens acting professor at Pace University and member of the Actor’s Equity Association. The workshop developed techniques to unlock the sometimes daunting Shakespeare language through exercises, games, soliloquies, scenes and sonnets.  Finally, the Make-up Workshop, was led by Brandalyn Fulton swing make-up artist for Aladdin, Wicked, and The Lion King on Broadway. In this workshop, students got a hands on experience with Special Effects & Character Makeup; Prosthetics, Mold Making, Facial Hair, Wig Styling & Construction.

This has been an amazing opportunity for our students, who had a chance to work alongside other Hudson County performing arts students and take workshops with theater professionals. They all found the workshops insightful and challenging, and are looking forward to more next year.

The Hudson County Alliance of Teen Artists is funded by the Hudson County Division of Cultural & Heritage Affairs/Tourist Development, Thomas A. DeGise, County Executive and Board of Chosen Freeholders, New Jersey Dept. of Education Interim Executive County Superintendent, Monica M. Tone, and the Hudson County Superintendents Round Table, North Bergen Board of Education, Secaucus Board of Education, Bayonne Board of Education, and New Jersey City University.

CP Places 3rd in the Hudson County Consumer Bowl

On Tuesday January 24, 2017 both County Prep and High Tech participated in the Hudson County Consumer Bowl at Dickinson High School. Mrs. Khiry the County Prep adviser, along with Co-Captains Destiny Kenny and April Kibalo and members Breann O'Neill, Jaimini Patel and Salvi Patel placed 3rd in the competition.  

The New Jersey High School Consumer Bowl is an educational competition for high school students across the state meant to educate young adults on a variety of consumer and business issues. 

Both County Prep and High Tech students did very well in the competition and had a fun time!

 

Foundation’s Board of Trustees Reorganizes and Re-energizes for 2017

January 19, 2017 (North Bergen, N.J.) – The HCST Foundation’s Trustee Board meeting ushered in some significant changes to the Foundation’s membership, including the appointment of new Vice President, two Board Trustees and a new Development Coordinator, announced Daniel Gans, President of the HCST Foundation. 

The Trustee meeting, which took place at Explore2000 Middle School in Jersey City, NJ, discussed the state of the Foundation and a review of the progress of the organization’s efforts in 2016. Most significantly, the existing Board unanimously confirmed several additional appointments to the Foundation including two new Board Trustees, Linda J. Quentzel and Joseph M. Muniz; Development Coordinator, Silverio A. Vega; new Vice President Laurent Lisimachio; and Advisory Board Chairperson, Amy Lin-Rodriguez. 

Ms. Quentzel, the former Executive Director of the HCST Foundation, has lent over thirty years to the Hudson County Schools of Technology. One of the co-founders of the HCST Foundation in 2009, Ms. Quentzel’s appointment as Board Trustee comes as she retired down from her role as Executive Director on January 1, 2017.

Mr. Muniz, the current Board Secretary for the Hudson County Schools of Technology, has dedicated his career to public service in Hudson County. In 2015, Mr. Muniz was recognized for his work as the Chairman of the Board of Directors for the Hudson Community Action Corporation, an organization that provides federally qualified healthcare to the North Hudson area.

Mr. Vega’s role as Development Coordinator will aid the Foundation during Ms. Quentzel’s outgoing transition. Mr. Vega brings over thirty years of public service in New Jersey as Mayor of the Town of West New York, Hudson County Freeholder and New Jersey State Assemblyman. 

Mr. Lisimachio, a Principal at the global architecture and design firm Gensler, has served previously as Board Trustee to the Foundation. In 2013, Mr. Lisimachio was the Gala Honoree for his work with the Hudson County Schools of Technology. 

Ms. Lin-Rodriguez, principal of Explore2000, oversees the district’s Middle School, a school notable for its academically-integrated curriculum, has proven a deep commitment to quality education throughout her tenure in the district.

Foundation President Daniel Gans says of these recent appointments, “These are powerful additions to our Board and to the Foundation as a whole. Each of these appointments reflects optimism for the future of this organization, and their success will be critical as we move forward in pursuit of our mission. I congratulate them all, and look forward to working alongside them.”

HCST Superintendent Frank J. Gargiulo adds, “The Foundation continually attracts quality voices from all over our community. These voices and experiences are vital to the success of our students, our schools and Hudson County as a whole. I’m glad to see that the Foundation continues to find highly successful individuals to support our schools and programs.”

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County Prep Boy’s Intramural Basketball Team Snags a Win

The County Prep Boy’s Intramural Basketball team defeated their counterparts from High Tech in the first of several matchups during the 2016-2017. The final score was 49-25 in favor of County Prep. Leading the way for County Prep were Xavier Roman, William Lebron, Hasham Kahlon, Christian Williams, and Mario Vergara. The game was closely contested for the first several minutes until County Prep ultimately pulled away. Students from both schools came out to support their classmates and respective schools. The game was played competitively, with an emphasis on teamwork and sportsmanship. This event was a great way for our students to expend some of the competitive fire that they have. Both schools performed admirably and are eager to return to the court soon. Many thanks go to High Tech for hosting the event. In addition, a big thank you must go out to the principals of both institutions, Ms. Mendolla (County Prep) and Dr. Giammarella (High Tech) for helping make this event a reality. Lastly, thanks to Mr. Gargiulo and Dr. Sirangelo for supporting this endeavor. We look forward to seeing our students on the court again soon.

Thank You to HCST Schools

On February 22, 2016 County Prep Science teacher, Tim O’Donnell and his five-year-old daughter Bridget were killed in a tragic car accident on the New Jersey Turnpike Hudson County Extension. Immediately following this event, there was a tremendous and very generous outpouring of donations from County Prep High School, High Tech High School and Explorer 2000 staff, students, and their families. As a result, a 529 College Savings Plan with Franklin Templeton was opened for Allessandra O’Donnell in the amount of $11,590.00. Tim would occasionally joke about not retiring until he had enough money saved for college. It is with his wishes in mind that the account was opened. On behalf of County Prep High School, we want to thank everyone who helped to bring this to fruition. Mr. O’ Donnell and Bridie were very much loved and are greatly missed. As Tim and Bridie’s one year anniversary approaches, it is with sadness but also some comfort that we thank everyone for their generosity and thoughtfulness in helping to pave the way for Allessandra O’Donnell’s future education and success.

HTHS Environmental Science Students Get Down and Dirty in Jersey City’s Washington Park

October 14, 2016 (North Bergen, N.J.) – Students in the Environmental Science Academy at High Tech High School spent a day working the gardens of Jersey City’s Washington Park, thanks to a grant funded by the HCST Foundation, announced Linda J. Quentzel, Executive Director.

Instructors Samantha Dorio, William Goold, Shelly Witham and Cathy Yuhas chaperoned twenty-six students, ranging in grade from freshman to senior, on the structured learning experience at Washington Park. Students and teachers, along with members of the Washington Park Association community and local law enforcement agents from the Hudson County Sheriff’s Department, worked side by side. Together, they pulled weeds, trimmed shrubs, edged lawns and planted trees throughout the park’s Learning Garden. Much of the work, which also included mulch spreading and bulb planting, was to prepare the garden for winter.

The event was aided by Washington Park Association advisor Nick Caballero who explains, “The event brought students together with law enforcement as well as the diverse Washington Park community. Our gardens thrive with the help of students and community, including those members of the North District precinct and Hudson County Sheriff's Department.”


President of the HCST Foundation Mr. Daniel Gans commends the event: “The Washington Park community is vibrant and essential, and we are happy to help connect our students to a local environmental community.”

Frank J. Gargiulo, HCST District Superintendent, said, “I’m proud to see the variety of community members coming together for this project. We have our Environmental Science Academy students working alongside police officers in an unexpected but vital setting. This is truly a community effort.”

Executive Director Linda J. Quentzel adds, “This event helped make a lasting connection between the HCST Foundation, High Tech students, and the Washington Park Association. It is a connection we are proud to be a part of, and that we hope will continue to benefit both our learners and the community at large.”

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First S.T.E.A.M. Vocational Middle School

Explore 2000 prides itself on being New Jersey's first S.T.E.A.M. vocational middle school, to which the students embody in their hands-on learning environment, which has produced some impressive projects.  Explore 2000 delves into three thematic units per year, one in each respective trimester.  In their first trimester for the 2016-2017 school year, “Oceans” were explored in many creative ways, as facilitators provided students with essential questions to guide the learning process while leaving room for student driven learning to occur.  The infusion of technology within the curriculum allows students to attain technical skills and knowledge, the application of which, in conjunction with the rigorous curriculum, has resulted in some of the most technology rich projects to date at the middle school level.  The students have access to an array of modern technologies such as the Stratasys 3D Printer and the Adobe CADD Software Suite, Vex Robotics kits supported by the Project Lead the Way curriculum, Hi-Definition digital recording cameras and movie making software, Hi-Definition audio recording and editing software, a Canon 36” banner printer, 85” Samsung Smart Boards, the one-to-one laptop initiative, and iPads just to name a few.

Some of the student projects that were a result of the aforementioned technologies was the water filtration system designed by Henrik using TinkerCad, and 3D printed with the Stratasys printer.  Henrik stated the following, “My experience with TinkerCAD is that it is a good beginner CAD designer with a surprising amount of features for free. My personal experience is nothing but good. To make my models I usually use geometric shapes and holes for simple models, and for more complicated models, I source part files from Thingiverse.com.  Thingiverse is a maker community that allows makers to share files for laser engravers, CNC mills, and 3D printers. TinkerCAD allows you to create files for all of those things.  The interface is super simple and with a few tutorials, most can pick up the skills very easily.”

 

Forgoing traditional building materials, students choose to 3D print sea creatures to include in their Showcase.  The realism of the objects brought to life the work that the students did, and provided a way for students to demonstrate the observations and connections they formed from the many field experiences related to the Oceans unit.

 

The banner printer has been used extensively to promote student activities throughout the school year, however the pupils began to use the printer in creative ways to reinforce their presentations and projects.  One such use was the creation of a life size “Wheel of Jeopardy” game board, presented to the guests of the first trimester showcase.  The contestants were immersed with the thrilling categories and mind-boggling questions.

For the annual Science fair, we saw in almost every experiment some form of technology utilized to solve the unanswered questions of the young minds.  Roxy employed the use of the robotics program to demonstrate how a robotic arm would function when grasping objects.  This required building and programming skills, of which she demonstrated advanced proficiency, a sure representation of her successful experiment.  To complement, her peers choose to further their understanding of how a 3D printed prosthesis would function.  The students in this group designed a model which they created using materials found around the home, and 3D printed a hand that required assembly and was capable of grasping objects as well.

  

Lastly, the craze of hoverboards were still on the minds of some of Explore 2000 students so they decided to build and code their own.  “Lithium Ion batteries have a sensor in it that gets damaged easily, and when this happens the fires occur.  We wanted to find an alternative to the previous generation hoverboards with our Science experiment,” stated Patrick.

 

High Tech High School Musical Theatre Presents STORY TO SONG: A MUSICAL REVUE

(North Bergen, NJ--January 12, 2017) High Tech High School Musical Theatre announces its January production, Story to Song: A Musical Revue.  The show will be performed on Wednesday and Thursday evenings, January 25^th and 26^th,  at 7 p.m. in the Jay Todd Black Box Theater at the North Hudson Center, announced Dr. Joseph Giammarella, Principal of High Tech High School.   

Story to Song: A Musical Revue explores the world of musical theatre, whose roots can be found in works of literature, from American novels like The Color Purple  and Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West to French classics like Le Fantôme de l'Opéra (The Phantom of the Opera) and Les Misérables.

Under the direction of John Zisa, Story to Song: A Musical Revue features the works of close to twenty different musicals in this production.  Performed by the Musical Theatre majors, this revue expresses the true combined power of literature and musical theatre on the world around us.      

Tickets for Story to Song: A Musical Revue can be purchased online at www.showtix4u.com.

County Prep Celebrates Winter Spirit Week

County Prep High School’s Annual Winter Spirit Week took place from Monday, December 12th, 2016 to Friday, December 16th, 2016. Spirit days are a great way to shake up the monotony of the school year.

The first day was dedicated to Pajama Day because what better way to come to school on cheerless Mondays? The following day was Twin Tuesday (classic!) in which pairs or groups of students creatively matched with each other. On Wednesday, individuals dressed up as their favorite celebrity or fictional character. County Prep celebrated their holiday spirit on Thursday,  which was dedicated to Ugly Sweater Day. The last and final day was also the second annual Battle of the Classes, in which each class wore their specific color to represent their class in the competition!

Although it is a lot of fun, coming up with creative ideas can be quite a challenge; however, students and staff celebrated Hurricane pride by successfully participating in this year’s winter school spirit week!

County Prep Hosts Second Annual Battle of the Classes

County Prep High School’s second annual Battle of the Classes (BOTC) took place on Friday, December 16th, 2016. It was in correlation with Spirit Week; on this day, specifically, each grade wore their class color to represent and cheer on their class. This year’s theme was Avatar and the four elements: Earth (Freshmen-green), Wind (Sophomores-pink), Water (Juniors-blue), and Fire (Seniors-red). Throughout 3 competitive events and a dance battle, each class fought against each other to ultimately win the grand trophy. The Freshmen triumphed and scored the most points in each criteria! Trailing behind were Juniors in 4th place, Seniors in 3rd, and Sophomores in 4th.

We would like to express our gratitude to senior coordinators Kishan Patel, Patricia Ramirez, and Joseph Mamaril, who have extensively planned and collaborated with Student Council advisors (Mr. J. Carey, Ms. Torres, and Mr. T. Carey), class advisors, and other staff members to make this event another success. Thank you to everyone who came out to participate, help, and watch this event and congrats to the Freshmen Class of 2020 for their victory!

High Tech Sophomores Attend Rockefeller University’s Annual TALKING SCIENCE Event

(New York, NY—January 7, 2017) Nine High Tech sophomores, accompanied by Dr. Nina Lavlinskaia and fellow science instructor Joseph Ona, attended Rockefeller University’s 2017 Talking Science event, announced Dr. Joseph Giammarella, Principal of High Tech High School.

The following sophomores attended Talking Science: Elijah Conlin of Hoboken; Jersey City resident Soleil Perez; Jillian Boyle and Andrew Tran of Kearny; North Bergen resident Sarah Bacha; and Secaucus residents Carina Garcia, Smriti Sukesh Kumar, Mahek Virani, and Ashley Luh.

Talking Science originated in 1959 by Alfred E. Mirsky. This year’s event, introduced by Professor Jean-Laurent Casanova, M.D., a pioneering immunologist, pediatrician, and geneticist, and head of the St. Giles Laboratory of Human Genetics of Infectious Diseases, encompassed lectures on genetically-inherited predispositions to infectious diseases and the way that they play a crucial role in disease development.   The High Tech sophomores engaged directly in the event, and not a single student harbored any ounce of regret attending Talking Science.

The event encouraged students to appreciate the communication aspect of scientific research, allowing fellow colleagues to congregate together with a common interest and curiosity. Thanks to the opportunity, the High Tech sophomores exposed themselves to unprecedented concepts and thought-provoking questions rarely found in textbooks.  

By all means, High Tech High School will always be welcomed by the programs of Rockefeller University. Perhaps these engaging opportunities may propel aspiring individuals to achieve and encourage the university’s motto: Scientia pro bono humani generis, Latin for “Science for the benefit of humanity.”

Explore 2000 Middle School Students Review WowWee MiP Robot

WowWee MiP Robot Review


        Mr. Sonny Dave, president of ExtremeKids LLC, provided Explore 2000 Middle School with the WowWee MiP Robot to enhance the learning experience of the students and introduce them to computer programming.  The students were very excited to unbox their new learning tool which was presented in a very appealing package with informative highlights of the MiPs ease of use.  Students quickly found the apps which are available for Android and iOS, and linked their “Explore Bot” to their iPad using Bluetooth.  Taking control of the bot with the control pad was the natural inclination of the children, however the facilitator chose to present the students with the Coder MiP app which allowed the students to use block-based programming to code the movement, sounds and LED lights of the MiP Robot.  The application has templates for students to see examples of how the code controls all the functions of the bot, additionally, there are pre-programmed modes that range from drive, cans, dance, battle, box, path, and stack.  The students found the graphical user interface of the coding app easy to use, as they created obstacle courses to test the variables within their code.  Mr. Kiran Aziz, educational technologist and facilitator at Explore 2000 Middle School finds the WowWee MiP Robot to be an essential S.T.E.M. resource to get students interested in computer coding.  Mr. Aziz states, “21st Century learners demonstrate proficiency using computers and common applications, the MiP provides a way to create engaging learning experiences and allow students to develop crucial S.T.E.M, problem solving, and coding skills... the package presentation of the MiP and the ease of use USB charging, included accessories, and the availability of accompanying applications for coding the robot and navigating makes this the perfect item to introduce students to robotics, and lay the foundation for coding in higher level languages.”  Hudson County Schools of Technology and Explore 2000 Middle School would like to thank Mr. Dave and ExtremeKids.com for providing this amazing resource for the students to enhance their learning.  The following is written by the respective students after they used the MiP in class.

Kimonye, 6th Grade:
I have a MiP Robot at home, so I have experience with the app and using the different modes, my favorite is the dancing mode.  I think it's cool that you could put on your own music for MiP to dance to. It's fun to see how other students used the MiP, I plan on bringing mine in so we can use the battle mode to compete.

Tatiana, 6th Grade:
         The MiP was very fun, I was amazed at how easy it was to use the coding app.  All I did was drag and drop the commands and the robot did exactly what I expected it to do.  The pre-programmed modes leave you with so many crazy possibilities! I loved using the drive mode because it let me navigate the robot freely around the room without having it bump into anything.  Learning about how the MiP works was almost like controlling a car!  The MiP leaves me feeling excited and I am thinking about getting one of my very own.  The MiP in my experience was just an amazing roller coaster and not in a bad way!

Malena, 5th Grade
I used the MiP before when I was younger with my friend and it was really fun and entertaining to play with. My current experience with the MiP was pretty interesting. I think it’s great that we can use it as a group.  I really enjoyed the MiP robot because I get to do fun stuff with it. There were different modes I used and they were really funny.  My favorite mode was dancing because my partner Kimonye did the moonwalk as our Explore Bot followed along.  I also like the MiP robot because it feels like a regular person being with you and you get to have fun with it.  I also got to draw a path for the MiP to walk on, but I had some difficulties because there were obstacles in the way so I had to change some of the commands in my code.