County Prep Advanced Spanish Classes Visit the Hispanic Society of America

     On Wednesday, November 11, 2015 County Prep’s senior AP Spanish Literature/Culture and the freshman Spanish for Native Speakers classes visited the Hispanic Society of America located in Washington Heights, New York. 

      The Hispanic Society promotes the study of the rich artistic and cultural traditions of Spain and Portugal and their areas of influence in the Americas and around the world. The museum is home to some of the most world renowned artifacts, sculptures, and paintings by artists such as: Goya, Zurbarán, Murillo, Velázquez, El Greco, and Sorolla.  The Sorolla room holds a magnificent, panoramic series of 14 canvases “The Provinces of Spain”, which represents a celebration of regional costumes and cultures. The students were impressed with Sorolla’s twentieth century “Vision of Spain.” In addition, Dr. Domenech -the students’ tour guide- unveiled for our students the museum’s famous map of the sixteenth century and showed them some original books published in 1552. These artifacts enlightened students’ knowledge of how the world was perceived in that era. All of the students were truly amazed by this visit to the Hispanic Society.

High Tech High School’s Sophomore French Classes Draw Many to the 2015 Café Classique

By Mously Lo

(North Bergen—November 8, 2015) Dr. Laje Gashi’s sophomore French classes at High Tech High School scrambled around the Resource Center of the North Hudson Center, adding finishing touches to their black, white, and red-decorated 2015 Café Classique banner, which would beckon guests who would also be greeted by the tantalizing aroma of freshly-baked crêpes, the twinkling of fairy lights, and French music serenading the ears, announced Dr. Joseph Giammarella, Principal of High Tech High School. 

Although initially anxious to see how the staff, teachers, and students would take to the 2015 Café Classique, the thirty students from the Class of 2018 came away wholly satisfied.

“A lot of people showed up,” declares Mously Lo, the hostess and a manager of the Café Classique.  “We had so much of fun serving and socializing with guests. It was an overall great experience, and we learned so much about French culture and cuisine, possibly more than we could have learned from only reading textbooks.”

In addition to selling freshly-baked crêpes, the Café Classique sold other desserts and dishes, from chocolate mousse served with whipped cream and mint leaves to croque monsieur straight from the press to sparkling cider.  The managers of the Café Classique treated guests to a photo booth, where they had the opportunity to pose in front of a background of the Eiffel Tower, Le Louvre, or the River Seine for posterity.  Dressed in formal black and white apparel, the Class of 2018 served French cuisine to passersby, even performing songs by famous performers like Belgian singer Stromae and French cabaret siren Edith Piaf.  By the end of Café Classique, the thirty sophomores from Dr. Gashi’s French classes raised over $783, enough to treat them to an authentic French restaurant in the springtime.

County Prep Students Participate in Structured Learning Experience

Representatives from the Youth Transitions to Work (YTTW) - Certified Nursing Assistant and Physical Therapy Aide Apprenticeship Program presented to over 60 students at County Prep High School on Monday, October 26, 2015.  The scholarship program provides outreach, training, and placements for students interested in becoming Certified Nursing Assistants (CNA) or Physical Therapy Aides (PTA).  Students learned about potential career pathways that can be launched as part of this “Earn While You Learn” initiative.

Rising Tide Capital’s Jay Savulich Speaks to High Tech Business & Technology Club

(North Bergen—November 9, 2015) High Tech’s Business & Technology Club recently invited Jay Savulich, Managing Director of Programs at Rising Tide Capital of Jersey City, to share his business acumen with Dr. Syed Abbasi’s students and club members, announced Dr. Joseph Giammarella, Principal of High Tech High School. 

Technical education proves essential for business majors to succeed in today’s competitive business workplace, noted Savulich, who has visited Dr. Abbasi’s students many times in the past few years.  He encouraged Dr. Abbasi’s students to take full advantage of the myriad internships available in the business world so that they could learn the ways to become successful entrepreneurs.  Savulich didn’t just speak hypothetically to them.  Rather, he offered the High Tech business students internships at Rising Tide Capital as well. 

“This was an informative presentation from which the business majors benefited tremendously,” declares Dr. Syed Abbasi, moderator for the High Tech High School Business & Technology Club.  “I’d like to thank Mr. Savulich for making this presentation and his generous offer to students for internships.”

Student Council Volunteers at County Prep’s 8th Grade Open House

County Prep High School hosted its annual 8^th grade Open House on Sunday, November 1^st, 2015. Student Council members volunteered to help out in coordinating this event to make sure the event ran smoothly. Vocational majors were represented by the students of the specific majors. Students assisted parents and prospective students with directing them to specific areas of the building. They guided them throughout the school. Parents and students were eager to learn about the opportunities, challenges, and courses offered by County Prep High School. Overall, the event ran smoothly and County Prep will be looking forward to what the Class of 2020 will bring to this school!

-Snehal Patel

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Former KAS Prep Student Speaks to High Tech Students

(North Bergen—October 28, 2015) High Tech Social Studies instructor Miguel Gonzalez’s freshmen and sophomores received a recent special guest, Rudolfo “Godeyvio” Castro, who spoke of volunteerism and the lasting effects of Francisco Pizzaro’s conquest of the Incas centuries ago on contemporary Peru’s poverty-stricken neighborhoods, announced Dr. Joseph Giammarella, Principal of High Tech High School. 

Castro, a former KAS Prep student, spoke about his visit to Machu Picchu and Cuzco, confessing that the trip had changed his life.  “Houses contained dirt floors and a drain was used as a shower,” he revealed.  “Eleven people lived with no private bathrooms.” This, he declared, can be traced to the economic exploitation and deprivation imposed on the Incas by Pizzaro, as systematic economic abuse in today’s Peru by multinational corporations mirrors the Conquistadors’ greedy lust for wealth.

Gonzalez’s U.S. History I class has just begun its study on the Conquistadors, who famously plundered the vast gold reserves of the Incan Empire.

Ruddy "Godeyvio" Castro dedicates his life to empowering people from all walks of life. A Kung Fu enthusiast primarily, he has made a career as a transformational life coach, motivational speaker, and a personal trainer.  Whether Castro offers his expertise at a local Police Athletic League or coaches the young and old in fitness, he seems at his purest on the stage as a speaker.  Castro dwells on spiritual teachings, such as ancient Kemetic science, Taoist philosophy, Gnostic wisdom, Quantum physics, and a litany of metaphysical teachings.  In all, he dedicates his life to seeking truth and spreading love.