in Upper Moreland, Ms. Perisho taught Spanish at both the Middle and High School levels for the School District of Philadelphia. While employed by the School District of Philadelphia, Ms. Perisho also served as a Small Learning Community Coordi-nator, the Assistant Principal and even-tually the Acting High School Principal of Kensington High School.

Joining Ms. Perisho on the adminis-trative team at Upper Moreland High School will be Ms. Charlene Collins, who will transition over from our Educa-tion Services Department, where she has been our District Program Specialist focusing on Math and Science, to become the Acting High School Assistant Principal for Curriculum and Instruction. Also returning to the High School is Mr. David DeVi-do, who will transfer from the Upper Moreland Middle School to become the High School’s Assistant Principal for Student Services. Mr. Richard Gould will remain the Athletic Direc-tor for Upper Moreland High School, while serving as the Upper Moreland Middle School’s Assistant Principal for Student Services.

In addition to the building-based administrative changes, Dr. Suzanne Bell has been promoted to the position of Director of Student Services and Supervisor of Secondary Special Education. Dr. Bell, who previously served as the District Supervisor of Special Education, recently completed her Doctorate in Educational Leader-

ship at Widener University. In her new position, Dr. Bell will work together with the new administrative team to

provide enhanced supports for the achievement and well-being of all of our High School students.

Summer 2010

The Newsletter of the Upper Moreland School District

Jo r nal

Joy Perisho, Acting Principal of Upper

Moreland High School

This summer, we have been hard at work filling key leadership vacancies in our District.

At a special July meeting, the Upper Moreland Board of School Directors convened to appoint Mrs. Susan Smith as the new Principal of Upper Moreland Primary School. Mrs.

Smith, who resides with her family in Drexel Hill, PA, has been a profes-sional educator for twenty-eight years. She received her undergraduate degree in Elementary Education from Ship-pensburg University, and earned her Masters degree in Educational Admin-istration from Gwynedd-Mercy Col-lege. During her career she has taught

second grade, as well as grades four through eight. For ten years, Mrs. Smith worked as the Administrative Team Leader and the Director of Admissions for Waldron Mercy Academy, a Blue Ribbon School of Excellence Award-winning school lo-cated in Merion, PA. In 2006, Mrs. Smith transitioned from her private school setting to work in the Philadelphia School District. From 2007 until her move to Upper Moreland, Mrs. Smith served as Principal of Hamilton Disston Elementary School, a 900 student K-8 public school in the Tacony section of Philadelphia.

Superintendent of Schools Dr. Robert Milrod noted that “Mrs. Smith has all of the qualities that we are seeking for our next Primary School Principal. She has a wide range of experiences, has served as an exemplary classroom teacher, and has a proven track record as a successful building principal. People speak of her as a consensus- and team-builder who relates well to students and adults alike. We look forward to welcoming her into our Upper Moreland family.”

At the end of August, it is expected that the Board of School Directors will name Ms. Joy Perisho as the Acting Principal of Upper Moreland High School. Ms. Perisho has been an im-portant member of our District since the 2000-2001 school year, and has served as Assistant Principal for Curriculum and Instruction at both the Upper Moreland Middle School and the Upper Moreland High School. Prior to her career

Primary School Principal Susan Smith

Acting High School Assistant Principal Charlene Collins

Upper Moreland School District Welcomes New Leadership for 2010-2011By: Dr. Robert Milrod, Superintendent of Schools

Suzanne Bell, Director of Student Services and Supervisor of Secondary

Special Education

The Willow Grove Rotary Club names two students per month as “Student of the Month” for demonstrating the Rotary’s motto, “Service Above Self.” Students are selected from the Upper Moreland High School and the Eastern

Center for Arts and Technology.

Student of the Month

Samantha Pronzato, the May Student of the Month has been a familiar face at the High School. Samantha balanced an extremely challenging academic schedule with a wide variety of extra-curricular activities. She was a member of the National Honor Society with a GPA of 103.5 and was ranked 10th in the senior class.

Samantha was service-oriented. She was a member of the Interact Club, Environmental & Film Club, section editor of the yearbook and was Co-President of the Key Club. Samantha skillfully played on a

number of athletic teams during her high school career: field hockey, soccer and swimming. Samantha has served as Cap-tain of the swim team. At graduation, Samantha was recipient of the Academic Physical Education Award and the Kenton W. Keiser School Director Leadership Scholarship for leadership and service displayed in and out of school.

In the community, Samantha has participated in the Relay4Life and American Red Cross Blood Drives. She is a lifeguard and teaches swim lessons at the Upper Moreland Swim Club.

Samantha will attend Pennsylvania State University in the fall and is undecided on her major.

Sean Burman, the June Student of the Month expemplifies the qualities of the Rotary Club’s motto “Service Above Self.” Sean has demonstrated his leadership skills as President of the Upper Moreland Marching Unit, Mellophone Section Leader with the Marching Band, Student Coordinator & Student Conductor of the Concert Choir and has been a coordinator of ensembles and musical groups at his church.

Sean, a positive influence both in and out of the classroom, has been an active member of the Drama Company the past four years, most recently playing the Beast in “Beauty and the Beast.” In addition, Sean was a member of the Interact Club, National Honor Society, cross country and track teams, District 11 Choir and Montco Band. Sean recently received the Drama Company Scholarship, Music Patrons Scholarship and the Alumni Association Frank E. Wismer Selfless Service Scholarship for his consideration of others in his daily activities.

In the community, Sean is an active member of his church, serving as a CCD Educator, a cantor and a performer with the church’s guitar group.

Sean’s future plans include attending Temple University and major in Music Education.

Best of the ClassMichael Dummeldinger was selected as Upper Moreland High School “Best of the Class” for the 2009-2010 school year by 6ABC. Michael had the highest GPA of the senior class and was senior class Valedictorian. Michael was recipient of

the Faculty Best All-Round Student Award and the Emily Abel Scholarship. Michael will attend the University of Delaware in September and major in Chemical Engineering.

The Intermediate School’s end of the year assembly honored one student as a hero. Student Brett Bross-man was recognized for his quick thinking and bravery when rescuing a friend. Brett, 10 years old, saved a 6-year old from drown-ing. After Brett noticed the

boy submerged in the pool, Brett pulled the boy from the pool and quickly got help. Brett’s distinguished ability to think smart on his feet has left an imprint on the Upper Moreland community.

Intermediate School Hero

Representing Upper Moreland

Tumbling and falling isn’t encouraging to most toddlers learning how to walk. But Upper Moreland’s Joanna

Sampson wasn’t the normal toddler. At the age of four, her career began in the world of gymnastics - tumbling and danc-ing her way in the world. Over a decade later, not much has changed. Graduating senior Joanna Sampson will spend the next four years at the University of Michigan on a full gym-nastics scholarship.

This three time national champion and level 10 gymnast won her first State and Regional Championship on the bars in 2005 at the age of 12. However, Joanna didn’t stop there.

She went on to place among the best at both the regional and na-tional level. Considering the bars to be her best event, Joanna placed first in the event at the 2008 level Junior Olympic Nationals. But the judges have been continu-ously impressed with more than just her bar performance. Joanna placed 2nd in All-Around gymnast in that 2008 Junior Olympic Na-tionals; won the all-around title at

regional in 2008; and was on the Junior Olympic National Team. An impressive resume, Joanna has won a total of six PA State Championships, five Regional Championships and two National Championships. But don’t be fooled; Joanna has had her bad days. Yet, it is these bad days that have motivated her to succeed. “One of the most challenging things about the sport is the bad days. Don’t let them take control of your head. You need to keep pushing through them and do the best you can everyday. If you can get through that challenge, then you can certainly get through what you come up against in the future.” In the High School, Joanna was a member of the Film

Club and the Environmental Club. She received the Presi-dential Academic Award and the Academic Excellence Award and has maintained Honor Roll throughout her High School Career. Good Luck Joanna, as you represent the University of Michigan’s Women’s Gymnastics Team.

Another aspiring athlete is senior John Bolich. After plac-ing 3rd in this year’s FILA National Championship in

Free Style at 187lb and 5th in Greco Roman at 164lb, the USA Wrestling invited John to compete for a spot on Team USA in the men’s freestyle at the Pan American Cadet Cham-pionships in Manaus, Brazil. Not only did John make the team, but he also won a national medal. In fact, John won the highest medal. Earning a Gold Medal in the 85 kg/187.5 lbs US freestyle in Brazil, Bolich represented his nation with honor and respect. However, this was not John’s first experience competing on a National Team. Rather, John made a trip to nationals in the 7th grade and has since won numerous awards, including two All Ameri-can Titles; Team PA Outstanding Wrestler Award; USA Wrestling All American in both Free Style & Greco Roman at the National Championships; and All American in Greco Roman in FILA National Championships.

This upcoming school year John will be a senior. He will attempt to be Upper Moreland’s first 2-time state medalist with his ultimate goal of becoming Upper Moreland’s first State Champ. John has verbally committed to wrestle for Le-high University, where he plans to attend in the fall of 2011.

John Bolich verbally com-mited to Lehigh University.

Joanna Sampson is headed to University of Michigan

Promotion Award Recipients

Pictured after the Promotion Ceremony for the fifth grade, are award winners (l-r) Noelle Woodman and Scott Murphy - Thomas Murt Award for Citizenship recipients; and Rebeka Humbrecht and Brandon Garner, Kiwanis Club Award recipients.

Congratulations to UMHS students John Bolich (wres-tling), Timothy Santry (wrestling) and James Cramer (boys’ lacrosse) who received Pennsylvania Academic All-American recognition for the 2009-2010 school year.

Academic All-American

Scholarship Recipient700 Club

Upper Moreland Schools....

The 700 Club at the High School is an academic distinction that showcases those student who have achieved a score of 700 or above on the verbal, math or critical reading section of the SAT 1. Pictured are the latest members who received the honor this spring (l-r) Rebekah Perry, Shannon Dillon,Taylor Pickersgill, Ekaterina Vlasova, Hannah Landers, Susanna Kim, Emily Hakes, Vaikunt Ranganathan, and Emilie Gray. Missing from the photo is Menvekeh Daramay.

Jonathan Gaston was presented the Upper Moreland Township Police Benevolent Association Scholarship by Officer Kelly Ruddell. The scholarship is given to a student who plans to pursue a career in criminal justice. Applicants are evaluated based on academ-ics, extracurricular activities, community service, and an essay on why they are interested in criminal justice as a career. Jonathan plans to attend Temple University in the fall. Pictured with Jonathan (l-r) is Principal Dr. Joseph Roy, Officer Kelly Ruddell and Officer Scott Metheny.

Timothy Uveges was this year’s recipient of the Princeton Book Club Award. The award is presented to the student who has the highest GPA in the junior class. Timothy is a member of the National Honor Society, Key Club, and the tennis and soccer teams. Pictured with Timothy above at a recent Board meeting are (l-r) Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Robert Milrod; Assistant Principal Ms. Joy Perisho, Board President Dr. David Hakes and Timo-thy’s parents Brenda & Albert Uveges.

Princeton Book Club AwardSilver Card ClubAre you over the age of 62? If you are, then you are eligible for membership into the Upper Moreland School District Silver Card Club. The reinstatement of this card allows residents over the age of 62 to attend School District events free of charge. • Silver Card Club Membership entitles you to attend various UM home athletic events or musical concerts without charge. • In addition, when a non-silver card theatre perfor- mance at the High School or Middle School has extra tickets fifteen minutes before the start of the show, Silver Card Club members will receive free admission to that performance as well.

To register for the Silver Card Club, bring a photo id to the Com-munity Information Network located in the UM Administration Building, 2900 Terwood Road. You may also contact Nora Rosen-baum at 215-830-1587 or via email nrosenbaum@umtsd.org.

.... Making a difference

Protecting the Egg

At the end of every school year, fifth graders at the Upper Moreland Intermediate School take part in a competition known as “The Egg Drop.” Students create a small contraption that will protect one uncooked egg from a variety of tosses and smashes. Students need to plan, prepare and practice to produce quality devices. Congratulations to fifth grade Egg Drop winners Rebec-ca Humbrecht and Alexander Gerlach who are pictured with teachers Mike Bair, Kevin Black, Dan Monaghan and Ryan Mellor.

Completing his senior project was not enough for Matt Wil-son. Rather, Matt wanted to find his sculpture a home. Unveiling a bronzed sculpture of an unknown soldier in Upper Moreland’s Memorial Drive Plaza, Matt’s dream became a real-ity. Standing about five feet tall, the statue will be housed at the entrance to Memorial Park. With the idea to honor those serving their country, Matt worked with his cousin Tom Barr to bring his project to life.

After making his final presentation at school, Matt contacted the Board of

Commissioners to have the sculpture installed at a local park. They reveled at the idea and encour-aged him to contact the parks and recreation committee, which worked with him on logistics. A crowd of about 50 joined Matt in the occasion, including Rep. Tom Murt, a representative from Allyson Schwartz’s office, General Jerry Beck and Superintendent Dr. Robert Milrod.

“Bringing ‘Art to the Parks’ is a whole new perspective, an eye opener for new alterna-tives,” said Board of Commissioners Presi-dent Sam Valenza. Matt will attend Drexel University to earn a degree in engineering.

Pictured with Matt at the statue dedication are (l-r) Superintendent Dr. Robert Milrod, Repre-sentative Thomas Murt, Board of Commissioners President Sam Valenza, Tom Barr, High School Vice-Principal Richard Gould, and Commission-er Kevin Spearing.

Selections for the spring sports First Team were made by the coaches in the Suburban 1 American Confer-ence. Picture are the selected UMHS athletes: Dave McInerney, baseball; Terrell Watson, track; Christie Graf, soccer; Keith Parker-Washington, track; Leslie Weaver, soccer; Drew Magaha, track; Sarah Fuller-ton, track; and Lucas Armstrong, baseball. Missing from the photo is Ronye Dennis, track.

Suburban 1 First Team

KUDOS TO:

Upper Moreland Intermediate School 5th grade students who came in the top 100 in the state in First In Math: Dylan Burke (52nd), Nicholas Schaefer (53rd), Shane Leister (77th) Kyle Dunham (79th) Ryan Lowry (97th).

Upper Moreland Intermediate School 4th grade students who came in the top 100 in the state in First In Math: Louis Knoebel (49th), Sterlen Barr (57th), Bryan Gordon (67th), Chloe Tice (71st), Ian Mason (75th) and Cassidy Murphy (85th).

Giving Back to the Community

What a year .....

Welcome to Upper Moreland! Don Welsh from Sonic Drive In presented Emily and Benedite Santry a check for the Clare L. Sean M. Scholarship Fund. The Clare L. Sean M. Scholar-ship was created by Jack and Benedicte Santry in memory of two children who passed away from cancer at an early age, never receiving an opportunity to shine at Upper Moreland High School. Support such as that given by Sonic, is the single most important reason that the Scholarship Fund in Upper Moreland School

District is successful. Locally managed by Michael Braun, Business Manager of the School District, 100 percent of all donations go directly towards scholarships. Support for the CLSM Foundation can be sent to the UMTSD (Santry Scholarship), c/o Michael Braun Business Manager, 2900 Terwood Road, Willow Grove, Pa. 19090. Receiving the check at the presentation were (l-r) Business Manager Michael Braun,

Don Welsh, and scholarship originators Emily and Benedicte Santry. Thank you Sonic! Welcome to the neighborhood.

Menvekeh Daramay was honored by the District for being selected as the 2010 recipient of the Harvard Prize Book Award. The award is presented to an eleventh grade student for excellence in scholarship and achieve-ment in other fields.

District Recognition

State QualifiersCongratulations to our Athletic State Qualifiers for Track (l-r) Alan Zigler, Terrell Watson, Keith Parker-Washington, Tessie Edwards, Drew Magaha and Matt Worley. Drew be-came the PIAA District One AAA 1600 meter Champion and went on to set a new school record for the event. In addition, members of the 4 X 100 Meter relay -Edwards, Worley, Zigler and Parker-Washington also set a new school record. Terrell Watson went on to place 7th and qualify for a State Medal in Javelin.

A Sonic Welcome!

Pictured above are the award recipients from the Eighth Grade Promotion Ceremony which took place in June. Congratulations to Harry Betz - Ameri-can Legion Certificate of Honorable Mention; Karli Lynch - Kiwanis Award, Patrick Driscoll & Sara Ny-holm - American Legion & American Legion Auxilary Certificate of School Award, and John Brady - Kiwan-is Club Award. Missing from the photo was Sydney Halberstadt, Judy LeBarr Award recipient.

8th Grade Award Recipients

Skills USA Medal Winners First In Math

...In the News

Congratulations to fifth grade student Bernardo Paranhos for his performance in First In Math, an internet based math-ematics program that provides students additional support to help them achieve their academic goals. Bernardo placed 10th overall in the state and 32nd overall when compared with all fifth grade students nationally. First In Math, a cur-riculum supplement, was implemented in the fall of 2009 and continues to improve our students math skills.

Aug. 30 - ALL Schools - Student First Day

Aug. 31 - Gr. 4 & 5 - Meet the Teacher Night

Aug. 31 - Board Meeting, 7:30 PM, TLC II

Sept. 1 - Gr. 1 & 2 - Meet the Teacher Night

Sept. 1 - HS - Music Patrons Mtg., 7 PM

Sept. 2 - HS - Booster Club Mtg., 7 PM

Sept. 3 - Student/Teacher Holiday

Sept. 6 - District Holiday, Labor Day

Sept. 7 - Gr. 3 - Meet the Teacher Night

Sept. 9 - Student Teacher Holiday

2010-2011 School Year

A Glance Ahead*

*Dates are subject to change.

Kudos to (l-r) Jane O’Brien (Allied Health), Shane Ebner (Protective Services), Gary Rairdon (Con-struction Technology) and Nichole Hamilton (Com-mercial Art) for their performance at Eastern Cen-ter for Arts & Technology 2009-2010 Skills USA Competition. Skills USA is a national organization for students who are enrolled in training programs providing quality educational experiences in leader-ship, teamwork, citizenship and character. At the District level, Gary earned a 1st Place Gold Medal, while Shane & Nichole earned a 2nd Place Silver Medal and Jane was awarded a 3rd Place Bronze Medal. Nichole went on to earn a 1st Place Gold Medal at the State Level. Congratulations!

Under the direction of Primary School Music Teacher, Mary Ann Meinhart, the second grade students present-ed the play, “Weather the Weather.” This play celebrates something that affects everyone of us everyday. Every second grader lent their voice with a line and shared fun performances of song and dance. Pictured above are students from the “Marvelous Meteorologist” crew.

Weather the Weather

Upper Moreland School District2900 Terwood RoadWillow Grove, PA 19090

NonprofitU.S. POSTAGE

PAIDHorsham, PAPermit No. 62

Non-Profit Organization

Upper Moreland School diStrict congratUlateS the claSS of 2010

The Class of 2010 was offered over ????? Million in Scholarship & Merit Grants

The UM Journal is published by: The Community Information Network

Robert J. Milrod, Ph. D. Superintendent

Nora RosenbaumPublisher