of all of the musicals dating

from 1972 to 1984, Philip

Inman, was the first high

school director to ever have

students perform “My Fair

Lady” in the United

States. Mrs. Timpano also

added that the musicals

during the time she was in

school were so good that five

people from Rochester have

made their living in the mu-

sic/entertainment industry.

So the next time you are

cleaning, remember to look

before you toss. After all,

Mrs. Haffey has preserved a

little bit of Rochester’s mu-

sical history by being a lit-

tle curious.

Don’t forget to see Roch-

ester’s latest Broadway per-

formance of “Seussical” in-

April.

By Bijon Anderson

It all started during NWEA

testing while doing a little bit of

early spring cleaning. Mrs.

Haffey was going through her

filing cabinets and came across

a torn up envelope with the

following message: “Musical

Programs. Anyone: Never

Throw Away!” After reading

this, Mrs. Haffey messaged the

recently retired Mrs. Timpano

to inquire more about the con-

tents of this envelope she inher-

ited over the summer.

In the envelope was a treas-

ure from the past that Mrs.

Haffey didn't expect to find.

Now it wasn't a pot of gold or

anything with monetary value,

but instead it was a collection

of Rochester’s musical pro-

grams from 1972-1987. One of

the most strikingly beautiful

characteristics of many of the

programs was the hand-drawn

artwork obviously done by stu-

dents at the time. Looking at

the beautiful artwork, you

have to appreciate the hard

work and patience that went

into these covers, especially

because technology has made

designing programs easier for

anyone to do.

While looking through the

vintage programs, Mrs. Haffey

noticed some familiar names

of teachers, including Mrs.

Timpano’s name as a student

performer and later as a facul-

ty member of the produc-

tions. She even discovered a

cousin’s name in the 1973 pro-

gram of the musical,

“Carousel.” After further ob-

servation of the programs, it

was discovered that Rochester

High School performed their

first Broadway musical pro-

duction, “Brigadoon,” in the

spring of 1963.

Furthermore, the director

A Blast From Rochester’s Musical Past!

ROCHESTER AREA MIDDLE SCHOOL

Friday, January 20, 2017 Volume 2, Issue 2

IN THE MIDDLE

In the Middle News Staff

Bijon Anderson

Ryan Clark

Keiarra Farren

Aubrye Feltes

Christopher Grossi

Jensen Hoffmeier

Amir Mason

Sydney Rippee

Regan Valent

Jenna Zawislak

Ryan Zawislak

Inside this issue:

In the Middle School 2-3

Teacher Spotlight 4

Students of the Month 4-5

In the Community 6

In Athletics 6

Student Input

7

Just Ask Jenna

7

Did You Know? 8

A collection of Rochester’s musical programs from 1972 to 1987and the envelope they were discovered.

By Regan Valent

A record number of mid-

dle school students attended

the Christmas Dance this

year. Over ninety tickets

were sold, which is more

than last year’s dance. This

dance honors the Christmas

season and offers middle

school students an oppor-

tunity to dress up and have

a fun evening. This year’s

dance was held on Satur-

day, December 17th in the

auditorium lobby.

Each year, the middle

school student council spon-

sors the dance and is re-

sponsible for choosing a new

theme. When all the back

and forth debating was

over, they finally came up

with a theme that everyone

was thrilled about: Silver and

Gold. When asked for her

thoughts about the theme, 8th

grader, Aubrye Feltes, said, ¨I

liked the theme of the dance

and all the decorations. I had

a lot of fun with all of my

friends.” Another student,

6th grader, Dominick DeLuca,

added, “I liked the refresh-

ments. The music was okay,

and I had a lot of fun.”

This year’s DJ, Norm,

mixed-up all of our favorite

songs. Even the high school

invited Norm to DJ their New

Year’s Bash. “The music

selection was very good! I felt

like every person there had a

great time by the way they

were dancing,” stated Miss

Smith. Additionally, eighth

grader, Mya Norman ex-

pressed that “The dance was

the best. I loved the food we

had. The dancing was on

point, and everyone had a

great time. I didn't like when

R.A.M.S. Annual Christmas Dance

Page 2 IN THE MIDDLE SCHOOL

the dance was over.¨

Overall, the stu-

dents had a blast. The

food, decorations, and

DJs were all a hit once

again.

Seventh graders, Abby Martin and Gabby Thompson pos-

ing in front of the tree at this year’s Christmas Dance.

By Sydney Rippee

Good behavior is some-

thing that should be re-

warded. Student Council is

rewarding students that

have achieved honor roll,

have minimal absences and

no discipline referrals with a

field trip. The students will

have the opportunity to go

to the UPMC Lemieux

Sports Complex in Cranber-

ry, PA on January 30, 2017.

The students that attend

will have the chance to have

a tour around the complex

and skate on the ice as a

reward for their good be-

havior.

In order to go on the field

trip, students cannot have

more than three days of ex-

cused absences. Also you are

not permitted to have any

office referrals such as ISS

and out of school suspension,

or failures to behave well in

general. Finally, you must

have the grade requirements

needed to qualify to attend.

Also, you must make the

honor roll for the second nine

weeks. If you meet at least

two out of three of the crite-

ria mentioned above, then

you qualify to attend. If you

meet only one or none of the

criteria, you will not likely

be allowed to attend.

The complex is open to all

for public skate, Monday

through Friday. The cost for

adults is eight dollars and

children under twelve pay

six dollars. Skate rentals are

three dollars if you don’t

have your own. The com-

plex features 185,000 square

feet of total space dedicated

to training athletes at every

level. Also, there is 54,000

square feet of clinical space,

including a sports’ medicine

clinic with 24 private pa-

tient rooms. The UPMC

Lemieux Sports Complex is

also the primary practice

and training facility for the

Pittsburgh Penguins.

Overall, good behavior is

a blessing, yet sometimes it’s

a curse. It is a blessing

when it’s a reward, yet a

Page 3

curse when people think of

you very lowly because of

your behavior. Take note

that if you behave well you

will be rewarded and get

the chance to miss a day of

school for fun. While if you

CHOOSE to misbehave, you

will be punished and forced

to spend all your time at

school.

SWPBI Field Trip– UPMC Lemieux Center

Let the Games Begin for G.A.T.E.!

IN THE MIDDLE SCHOOL

By Ryan Clark

G.A.T.E. is a class for

students who enjoy enrich-

ing academic activities. It

provides them with chal-

lenging competitions

throughout the year. These

competitions are called Ac-

ademic Games. Schools all

over the county send stu-

dents to these games to

compete in the following

categories: Propaganda,

Linguistics, Equations,

Presidents, and Current

Events.

Even though some of the

games seem easy enough,

others are much more chal-

lenging than others. One of

these challenges is Math 24.

In order to represent Roch-

ester at the county compe-

tition, you have to beat

your peers first. Many stu-

dents find this more nerve-

racking because they are so

competitive with each other.

The challenge to make it

to the next level gets even

tougher for the propaganda

competition, where competi-

tors have to figure out what

slogans appeal to and many

other language-based activi-

ties. In order to qualify for

nationals, you have to make

it in the top 15% of scoring,

which is not an easy task to

do. Propaganda is a question

and response game. Students

sit in groups of three or four

for purposes of checking each

other’s answers and keeping

score.

Linguistics is played with

23-lettered 3D squares on a

two segmented tangle. Every

match includes three players

from various schools. Numer-

ous matches happen at the

same time and keep going for

35 minutes. Contingent on the

time planned, a few such

matches can occur on a given

day. In order to qualify, an

individual must score a six-

teen or higher. The most

someone can earn is eight-

een which very few people

do.

Finally, Presidents and

Current Events are also

part of the Academic

Games. It is a great deal

of fun to test your

knowledge of facts in both

of these categories. If you

Rochester Middle School G.AT.E. students at the Linguistics Competition on November 29, 2016

By Jensen Hoffmeier

Congratulations to the stu-

dents of the month recipients

for November and December.

You all worked so hard for this

accomplishment.

Eighth grader, Jason Bai-

ley, explains he earned it in

November because he always

has his work done. Jason’s

advice for others to strive for

student of the month is, “If

you work hard enough, you’ll

have a brighter future.” Ac-

cording to Mrs. Haffey, he was

selected because he works

hard, is very respectful and

doesn't get involved in trou-

ble. He is a true example of

well-rounded student.”

Sixth grader, Kristen

Sokolovich, explains her se-

lection. “I read a lot and do

my work.” Kristen’s advice

to others is, “If you put forth

effort, you’ll succeed.” Her

teachers nominated her be-

cause she is self motivated,

responsible, respectful, and

overall a good student.

The seventh grade No-

vember student was Abby

Martin. She explained why

she thinks she was selected.

“I have good attendance,

my grades are good, and

overall I have a positive

behavior.” Abby’s advice

for people who want to be

student of the month is, “If

November Students of the Month

Teacher Spotlight: Miss Smith: Home Sweet Home Rochester!

and trying to run everything as

smoothly as it was done the

past several years.

Q- Where did you attend

college?

A- I have earned both my

bachelor's and master’s degrees

from Slippery Rock Universi-

ty.

Q- What do you like to do in

your free time?

A- I like to read novels, hang

out with family, and walk my

two dogs.

Q- What is your favorite

food?

A- My favorite food is lettuce.

Q- Did you play sports in

school? If so, what ones?

A- I played soccer for sixteen

years.

Q- If you could meet any

person in the world, who

would it be and why?

A– It would be Benjamin

Franklin, because he was in-

novative and influential in

history.

Q- What do you enjoy most

about being a teacher?

A- I enjoy working with stu-

dents and encouraging life

long learners.

Q- If you could pick any job

in the world, what would it

be and why?

A- I would be a vet, but unfor-

tunately, I’m allergic to most

animals.

Q- Why did you choose to

become a Social Studies

teacher?

A- I have always had a pas-

sion for Social Studies. To be

honest, I was never really good

at math.

By Keiarra Farren

The In the Middle news staff

sat down with Miss Smith

to ask her a few questions

about returning to Roches-

ter as a teacher.

Q- What school did you

teach at before coming home

to Rochester?

A- I taught at Northampton

Public Schools in Virginia for

one year before landing the job

here.

Q- What inspired you to

become a teacher?

A- My grandfather was a So-

cial Studies teacher at Roches-

ter for 30 years.

Q– What do you enjoy

about advising student

council, and what’s your

biggest challenge?

A- I enjoy organizing the trips

to help communities, and my

biggest challenge is being new

Page 4

7th and 8th Grade Social Studies Teacher-Miss Smith

Q- Where is your favorite

place to shop and why?

A- My favorite place is

PetSmart, because I can never

spoil my dogs enough.

Q- What’s your favorite sport

and team name?

A- My favorite sports’ team is

the Pittsburgh Pirates. LET’S

GO BUCS!

Q- What do you like to do in

the summer?

A- I love going to beaches and

state parks.

you work to your limit, you

will accomplish a lot of

things.” Her teachers all

agreed that Abby is a hard

working student, who is

very organized and always

participates in classes.

IN THE MIDDLE SCHOOL

R.A.M.S. November Students of the Month– Jason Bailey, Abby Martin and Kristin Sokolovich

By Jensen Hoffmeier

R.A.M.S. staff members

caught up with December stu-

dents of the month for a few

questions.

Eighth grader, Mya Nor-

man, explains why she re-

ceived the award. “I do my

school work, and I have good

grades.” Her advice for other

students is to live by these

words, “ I can, I will, It’s

done!” Miss Ranone says,

“She is organized, on top of

things, and is nice to everyone

and she always tries her best.”

Mya’s future plans consist of

going to college for nursing.

For seventh grader, Ryan

McEachern, he says he thinks

he was chosen because he

gets good grades and works

hard. His advice to others

striving for their best is,

“Dreams do come true when

you work for them.” His

homeroom teacher says he

selected Ryan because “he is

a new student with positive

energy that does his work.”

Lastly, sixth grader,

Lasina Dobritz, explains why

she received the honor in De-

cember was because of her

grades and behavior, which

seem to be consistent charac-

teristics of all honorees. Her

advice for other students

wanting to receive this recog-

nition is to stay focused.

Her homeroom teacher’s

reason for choosing her

is, “ She always partici-

pates and does well with

school.”

Page 5

January Students of the Month

By Jensen Hoffmeier

Eighth grade student,

Ryan Zawizlak, explains

why he received the student

of the month award in Janu-

ary. “I’m hard working, and

I always try my best. Some-

times, I know I act silly, but

I’m always dependable.” His

advice for other students is,

“No matter what, always

try your best.” As for

Ryan’s future plans, he is

looking into the world of

science more likely chemis-

try. His interests and hob-

bies include football, and

basketball.

The seventh grade-

selection, Gabriella Thomp-

son, says that she tries to be

nice and keep her grades up.

Her advice to other students

wanting to become student

of the month is, “Eat, Sleep,

and Read.” Miss Smith said

December Students of the Month

IN THE MIDDLE SCHOOL

R.A.M.S. December Students of the Month– Ryan McEachern and Mya Norman.

(Missing is Lasina Dobritz)

R.A.M.S. January Students of the Month– Amarina Simoni, Gabrielle Thompson, and Ryan Zawislak

she chose her as student of the

month because “she has a

good work ethic, is very help-

ful and cares about her

grades.” Gabrielle’s plans for

the future consist of her going

to USF in Florida for dentis-

try. Her interests and hobbies

are sleeping and reading.

Last but not least, sixth

grader, Amarina Simoni, ex-

plains that she thinks she was

recognized as the student of

the month because she obeys

the rules and gets her work

done. Her advice to others is

“Always try your best.” Mrs.

Denes said, “Amarina is con-

scientious about her work and

always has her nose in a

book.” Her current hobbies

and interests consist of her

passion for dance, board

games and movies.

Congratulations Elks Essay Contest

Winners!

6th Grade: Nicholas Gelston, Isabella Seybert,

and Amarina Simoni

8th Grade: Mya Norman, Jenna Zawislak, and

Ryan Zawislak

Photographs by

Regan Valent

By Aubrye Feltes, Sydney

Rippee and Jenna Zawislak

In November, student

council hosted it’s annual

canned food drive in the mid-

dle school for the Salvation

Army. This year’s goal was

to collect 900 cans before the

Thanksgiving holiday. We

finished with a total amount

of 722 cans. Even though we

fell short of our goal, the do-

nations were very much ap-

preciated and helped those

who needed them to feed

their families. The home-

room with the most cans was

Mr. Dinardo’s seventh grade

homeroom with 194. As a

reward, these students will

receive an ice cream party.

Student council plans to host

another canned food drive

later this Spring.

In December, members of

student council went to the

Greater Pittsburgh Food

Bank. Students entered the

food bank, received assign-

ments to do, and then went

to work. They packed boxes

full of various items that

contained certain foods such

as cereal, snacks, and a vari-

ety of foods. While some

volunteers packed the boxes,

others constructed, along

with sealed and labeled

them. The students received

a short respite after a certain

duration of working. After

this period of rest, the stu-

dents went back to work

until it was time to head

back to Rochester.

Next month, members

of student council will ven-

ture to Rochester Manor

to play Bingo with the

residents. Last year, stu-

dents enjoyed their time

and so did the residents.

Salvation Army Canned Food Drive and the Greater Pittsburgh Food Bank

Page 6

R.A.M.S. Boy’s Basketball—Bouncing Back

R.A.M.S. Student Council members

packing boxes at the Greater Pittsburgh Food Bank

Ryan Zawislak. The seventh grade

players also dress for the eighth grade

team.

So far we have tried our best, but it

hasn’t been enough to etch more wins.

Hopefully, with a little more hard

work, we can win more games this

season.

Hopefully, this year will be

even better.

Community service has

an important impact on stu-

dents lives. These activities

help shape them into the

mature young adults they

should become.

IN THE COMMUNITY

IN ATHLETICS

By Ryan Zawislak

Once again, another middle

school basketball season is under-

way for the boys. Mr. Dan O’Bri-

en and Mr. Ed Gorman have re-

turned to their coaching duties for

another year. It has been a bit of

a rocky road so far this season, but

the boys and their coaches are op-

timistic about the remainder of the

season.

Our first game of the season

was a scrimmage against Ellwood

City in which we lost, but we had

only learned about three of our

plays. Improvements have come

slowly, which has made for a little

bit of a frustrating start to the

season. Currently, the 7th grade

squad is winless, while the 8th

grade team has managed one win

so far. The eighth grade team has

lost to Central Valley, Black-

hawk, New Brighton, Beaver

Falls, and Shenango, but man-

aged to play well enough to beat

Midland. Even though, we

have played well, it still hasn’t

been enough to win more games

this season.

Even though we have strug-

gled to find more wins, both the

seventh and eighth grade players

are hopeful for turning this sea-

son around. Members of this

year’s seventh grade team in-

clude Jonathan Azulay, Ethan

Digmiller, Noah Haskins, Klay-

ton Henshey, Logan Hill, Sal

Laure, and Jerome Mullins. The

eighth grade team consists of

Keiondre Abercrombie, Jason

Fogle, Devon Hemer, Evan

Lewandowski, Brock Palak, and

Seventh grade players waiting after a foul against Beaver.

By Jenna Zawislak

Every year, people

around the world come up

with New Year’s Resolu-

tions that they try to fol-

low during the next year.

People around the middle

school have some interest-

ing resolutions.

1. Mrs. Haffey, one of the

8th grade teachers said,

“ My New Year’s Reso-

lution is for all of my

eighth grade boys to

magically mature.”

NOTE: This was the

same resolution she

had last year for the

same boys!

2. Eighth grader, Aubrye

Feltes wants to be “A

more friendly person and

have better taste in

friends.”

3. Miss Smith, our 7th and

8th grade Social Studies

teacher said, “ My New

Year’s Resolution is to

be more patient.”

4. Another 8th grader,

Gavin Buttermore,

wants to “ get better

grades.”

5. Our 7th and 8th grade

Science teacher, Mr. Di-

nardo, said, “ My New

Year’s resolution is to be

more positive-the cup is

half-full of protein.”

Seventh graders, Noah

Haskins and Janae Jetter,

also have great New Year’s

Resolutions.

6. Noah said, “ My New

Year’s Resolution is to

workout more and live a

healthier lifestyle.”

7. Janae said that her New

Year’s Resolution is “to

Just Ask Jenna– The Book Bag Debate

“Hillary would have made

America better.”

Sal Laure stated, “I want-

ed Hillary, but I don't know

why.”

Sixth grader, Amarina

Simoni said, “I wanted Hilla-

ry, because she's not Donald

Trump.”

On the flip side, some

many students were not Hil-

lary supporters. Chris Grossi,

said, “Trump wouldn't lie as

much.” Ryan Zawislak also

said, “I took a test in Social

Studies that said I was more

for Trump.”

On Friday January 20,

2017, Donald J. Trump will

become our forty-fifth presi-

dent of the United States.

Let's hope he does a good job

at keeping our country safe

and will “Make America

Great Again.”

By Bijon Anderson

On November 8, 2016,

our country found out who

our new president would be

for the next four years,

Donald Trump. Many peo-

ple around the world have

had very strong opinions

about this year's presiden-

tial election, and it is con-

sidered to be one of the

most popular elections of all

time. Some of the students

and teachers have shared

their opinions with In the

Middle staff.

Mr.Ziegler said “I'm glad

it's over.”

Miss Ranone said, “I'm

happy that it's over and

that I don't have to see an-

ymore ads.”

Some students shared

their opinions on the results

too.

Dante Sherod said,

Page 7

New Year’s Resolutions—The Good, the Bad, and Impossible

STUDENT INPUT

IN OUR OPINION

so, students and staff could

trip over these bags and suf-

fer serious injuries as a result.

On the other hand, being

able to have book bags in the

halls and classrooms would

be helpful in saving time for

both students and teachers.

This would eliminate unnec-

essary classroom disruptions

to go to lockers to get a book

or homework assignment. As

a result, lockers would be

more organized, and this

could alleviate the piles of

trash left in the hallways.

Ultimately, lifting the class-

room and hallway ban on

book bags seems worth at

least trying even for a few

weeks or a month to see if

the benefits outweigh the

negative consequences.

just have more

friends.”

8. Finally, we have 6th

grader, Cassie Cervi,

who said, “ My New

Year’s resolution is to

quit talking in class

and talking back to the

teachers.”

As you can see, Roches-

ter Area Middle School

staff and students have

exceptional New Year’s

Resolutions.

By Jenna Zawislak

One rule that our school has

that I do not particularly en-

joy is we are not allowed to

have our book bags in the halls

or in the classrooms during the

school day. It would be help-

ful if we could have bags in the

halls and the classroom be-

cause then we would not have

to go to our lockers as much.

Having a bag to carry your

books could also prevent stu-

dents from being late to class. I

think the number one reason

students are late for their clas-

ses is because they had to go to

their lockers. I understand

why we can’t have bags in the

halls and the classrooms be-

cause many would abuse the

privilege and not-to-mention

safety. For instance, people

may be tempted to steal things

which could get them in a lot

of trouble as well as cause a

headache for the victims. Al-

Reflections on a Historical Election

Rochester Area Middle School

We’re on the

web!

www.rasd.org

“The Best Is In the Middle!”

the first president to be sworn into

office wearing long trousers.

In 1917, women were in-

cluded for the first time in Wood-

row Wilson's second inaugural pa-

rade.

The first inaugural parade

broadcasted on the internet was Bill

Clinton’s second inauguration in

1996.

The warmest inauguration

was Ronald Reagan's first at 55ºF

in 1981, and the coldest was

Reagan's second inauguration at

7ºF in 1985.

I hope you have learned

more about the inauguration and if

you want to learn more go to http://

www.thedailybeast.com.

By Chris Grossi

Most people know that inaugu-

ration day is the day when the

elected president is sworn into

office. Today, we inaugurate our

forty-fifth president into office,

Donald J. Trump. There are in-

teresting facts that surround the

inaugurations of some of our most

famous and not-so famous presi-

dents.

George Washington

holds the record for the shortest

inaugural address at 135 words,

while William H. Harrison holds

the record for the longest inaugu-

ral address at 8,445 words.

John Quincy Adams was

Did You Know? Presidential Inauguration Facts

Upcoming Events:

SWPB Field Trip—

January 30th

Sweetheart Bingo–

February 14th

R.A.M.S. Snow tubing–

February 16th

Cal U Basketball—

February 25th

R.A.M.S. Student vs. Faculty Basketball Game and Sky Zone

Field Trip—March

Did You Know? Martin Luther King Jr.

By Amir Mason

Martin Luther King Jr. was an

American Baptist minister and

activist, who was a leader in the

African-American Civil Rights

Movement. Martin Luther, whose

birth name was Michael, but later

changed it, was born January 15,

1929 in Atlanta, Georgia.

He attended segregated public

schools and graduated from high

school at the age of 15. Martin

earned his Bachelor of the Arts

degree at Morehouse College in

1948. He also took three years of

theological study at Crozer Theo-

logical Seminary in Pennsylvania.

In Boston, he met and married a

woman named Coretta Scott.

They later had two sons and

daughters. In 1954, Martin Lu-

ther King became pastor of the

Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in

Montgomery, Alabama.

In 1955, he began a bus boy-

cott that lasted 382 days. During

that boycott, Martin Luther was

arrested, his home was bombed,

and he was abused. In 1957, he

was elected president of the

Southern Christian Leadership

Conference, an organization

formed to provide new leadership

for the now burgeoning civil

rights movement.

At the age of 35, Martin was

the youngest man to have re-

ceived the Nobel Peace Prize.

When notified of his selection, he

announced that he would turn

over the prize money of $54,123 to

the civil rights movement. On

April 4, 1968, while standing on

the balcony of his motel room in

Memphis, Tennessee, he was as-

sassinated. His legacy lives on

and is celebrated still today. If

you want to learn more, then in-

formation can be found at

www.nobleprize.org

John Quincy Adams being sworn in as the sixth president of the United States on March 4, 1825.